Likely the Best Top Tier German QPR (Under $35 for Their Top Wine) Ready to Go 2010 Vintage Plus a $17.99 Delicious Every Day Pinot

2010 Spater-Veit Spatburgunder # 1
 - NSG Grit, Grip and Structure
 - The Elegance, Finesse and Head Spinning Aromas of Vosne-Romanee
 - Ridiculous Floral and Fruity Nose
 - Ripe, Concentrated Yet Elegant, Fresh Palate
 - Their Top Wine (for $34.99)
 - Only Sold to Rich Germans and Me

2015 Spater-Veit Rotwein
 - A Big Fat Kiss of Pinot Noir
 - $17.99 Each on 4 Plus Case Pricing (Party Wine)
 - Delicious Fruit, Amazing Freshness
 - What You Want After a Bad Day



I think that Niklas Welter might be the greatest red wine talent in Germany that no one knows about.

It's because his estate, Spater-Veit is famous for its fantastic Rieslings from Piesport. But the people in the know know that German Pinot Noir is the biggest thing going now and the value is ridiculous as not many people are making high quality German Pinot Noir. But quietly Niklas Welter is killing it in Piesport making small batch Pinot Noir from revered sites usually saved for Riesling. Global warming has provided a new way and new perspective in German Pinot Noir. The Pinots here at every level are astonishing and all crafted by a genius. A quiet genius, but a genius no doubt. I cannot tell you how great these are, at this moment in time. He only sells his wines when they are ready to drink but still can age as they can afford to as they make and sell out of brilliant Riesling every year that funds this passion project of Niklas.

First up is the 2010 Spater-Veit Spatburgunder # 1 ($34.99 on 4) which is their top bottling, their Grand Cru per se. How do I describe this wine? If Josef Walter is more Cote de Beaune (Volnay, Corton, Marqnges) and Enderle & Moll and Zieriesen are more of a Vosne-Romanee style then I have to say Spater-Veit is more of a Nuits-Saint-Georges / Chambolle style. But it's those Nuits vineyards that are next to Vosne-Romanee like Bousselots and Chaignots. The wines still have that NSG grit, grip and structure but they also have the elegance, finesse and head spinning aromas of Vosne-Romanee. As they age they become more Chambolle-like.

The nose is damn near ridiculous and in my wine career it's still very memorable when I stuck my enormous schnozz in that glass. Complex with loads of spice and so layered and really jumps out of the glass. Just profound. 2010 is a great vintage for Pinot Noir in the Mosel.  It's a warm vintage but with crazy acidity. So you have thick luscious fruit that is buoyed by some stupendous acids. The warmer vintages are very good for Pinot Noir in the Mosel (it's cold). Sick nose. Just sick. Floral like crazy with a melange of fruits -  ripe cherry fruits. So mineral, so slated, so pretty. A true drop everything and run and get this wine nose so you can smell It for days.

The palate is elegant, oh so elegant, and so pretty with terrific ripeness and so juicy. Serious concentration and wonderfully intense. Stunning. Ripe beautiful tannins with a long and mineral finish. The slate is so apparent on this wine and the freshness is like Mosel Riesling. This is as nimble and delicate as Mosel Riesling and often shares the same characteristics  but in Pinot Noir clothing. Very juicy, amazing fruit. Stunning. It has some tannins still and can be aged for 8-10 more years I'd say. Here is a link to a video of me tasting the 2010 in the not too distant past.

The #1 is from the great Piesporter Falkenberg which up until this point I only have had Stefan Steinmetz's Riesling from this site. It is a terrific site with absolutely rocking top notch terroir. It is a very high south facing vineyard with blue slate. This wine, and all the others I will offer are(plus one store in Austria for some reason).  Most of their production is dry, off dry and sweet Riesling. This is almost a side passion project. Most of the Cru wines are released, minimum, 5 years after harvest. I tasted some younger vintages and I have to agree that is a wise decision and luxury that they can afford to do it. It is also a huge boon for the consumer. For $33 just get this wine.

2015 is such an amazing vintage that I will eventually sell all the Spater-Veit wines when they are released. Niklas waits and waits and waits until the wines are ready. Today I've got one of the craziest values ever. It's just silly. I realized after I sold the 2015 Pi Not (which is now called xxxxxyyy, as Niklas says it is easier for consumers) that I had to sell the 2015 Spater-Veit Rotwein which is 100% Pinot Noir and today it can be had for $17.99 a bottle on a 4-Pack. Please inquire about case pricing. Crazy? Right? Anyway this is like the Pinot Noir version of the famous Raisins Gaulois bottling of Beaujolais by the even more famous Marcel Lapierre. Anyone who knows that wine and loves it needs to drop everything and order at least 6 bottles of this stuff. You can cool this off in the fridge and drink it with a slight chill. There is 2 grams of sugar I t his and it ferments for 4 weeks on the lees and then 1.5 weeks in the barrel and it is 100% Piesporter Treppchen which is a terrific site for Riesling and now Pinot Noir. It's just a big fat kiss of Pinot Noir this can only make one smile with its juiciness and purity. It's so clean and so fresh with lively acids l. It's so lithe and elegant with little to no tannin but serious serious fruit. This is German Glou Glou at its best.

2010 Spater-Veit Spatburgunder # 1 - $36.99 ($139.96 4-pack) 

(VERY LIMITED)

2015 Spater Veit Rotwein - $19.99 ($71.96 4-pack)

(LIMITED, PLEASE INQUIRE ABOUT CASE PRICING)