Hanspeter Ziereisen
- Is He the Most Talented Winemaker in Europe?
- Elite Level Pinot Noir, Syrah, Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio, Gutedel, Pinot Blanc - That's 6 Grapes
- More Grand Cru Grapes than any Winemaker in Europe
- He Can Make Grand Cru Wines from Anything
- Today's Wines Are the Work of an Absolute Master
- It's Like Buying Roulot or Ente Bourgogne Blanc - the Winemaker Makes the Terroir Almost Secondary
The End of an Era
- Ziereisen Is Top 3 in Germany for Pinot Noir
- We Could Formerly Get As Much As We Wanted
- No More
- The Germans Have Figured It Out and Are Ordering in Advance
- Plus Ziereisen Has a National Importer in the States
- And the Wine Advocate Just Gave Them Huge Scores
- These Wines Are Now Allocated ...
- ... If You Want Some, Let Me Know Quickly
2019 Ziereisen "Hard" Chardonnay - 24 bottles!
- Like Drinking Meursault Tessons
- 1er Cru Quality for $36.99
- The Inferior 2017 - 93 Points Wine Advocate (Reinhardt)
- Nose - So Meursaultian
- Minerals, Beeswax
- Great Acidity and Balance
- Terrific Texture
- Lovely Fruit: Apples, Citrus
- Terrific Acidic Zing
- 24 Bottles
2019 Ziereisen Jaspis Chardonnay Nagelin - 36 Bottles!
- Reminds me of Batard Montrachet or Corton Charlemagne
- 600 Bottles Made
- Thunderous Depth
- Epic, Epic Density of the Great Grand Crus of Burgundy
- Incredible Structure
- Incredible Mineral Detail, Mineral Sap Ridiculous Complexity
- The Wall of Flavor - Made from Titanium
- No New Wood
- 2017 (Inferior Vintage) Got 94+ from Stephan Reinhardt
- 36 Bottles
2019 Ziereisen Grauburgunder "Würmlin - Jaspis" - 24 Bottles!
- This Is The Alte Reben - New Name!
- The BEST Pinot Grigio In The World
- 96 Points Stephan Reinhardt, Wine Advocate (2018)
- Grand Cru Quality Fruit with the Grace of Puligny
- One of the Most Explosive German Whites I've Ever Had
- The 2013 Blew Away a 1er Cru Raveneau at Dinner
- This Will Sell Out at The Estate By This Weekend
- 24 Bottles
Please Do NOT Forward or Share on Social Media - I Have 1/3 the Bottles I Need to Satisfy Demand
Sadly the day has come where Ziereisen is allocated. We had a good run. This offer is only
going to previous buyers of Ziereisen and sorry in advance but some of you will be left carrying an empty bag as I don’t have enough.
A Burgundian in Baden
How many world truly Burgundian style Chardonnays exist outside of Burgundy? Until now? I'd say zero. Italy dabbles in it. And some American ones are ok. But I'm talking about wines that truly achieve all that Chardonnay can achieve? The peak of the Burgundian Mt. Everest of Chardonnay? I'm staying with zero.
Germany has never been even adequate at Chardonnay.
- They have the terroir for it.
- They obviously have the winemaking skill.
But I think that like their former general ineptitude with Pinot Noir, they tried to ape the worst habits of Burgundy (too much oak).
It was a matter of time until a German figured it out. And, not surprisingly, that German is the bounding and resounding mad genius, Hanspseter Ziereisen.
These are the first world class Chardonnay that can compete with the titans in Burgundy. And the prices, even with the weak dollar, are incredible for the quality.
Burgundy is officially on notice - there's a new player in the game.
This is a call for all of the listers who appreciate German winemaking skill (and understand that German prices are quite low for the quality) but don't like riesling. The game is on.
The Wines
First up I have a wine that that has absolutely put the 2018 version to shame. 2019 is a brilliant vintage for the very special whites of Hanspeter Ziereisen and he said in 10-15 years of making Chardonnay that it is by far the best vintage for his Chardonnay yet! Think of it like 2014/2012 white Burgundy as a reference point. Today the 2019 Ziereisen Hard (100% Chardonnay) can be had for $36.99 NET. This wine is absurdly brilliant. It is an exhilarating bottle of Chardonnay and dare I say profound? Rheinhardt (The Wine Advocate) gave the 2017 a 93 and I think 2019 is a far, far superior wine. 95 in my book. Hanspeter only uses special German Oak and a specific toast that makes the oak imperceptible. It's unreal. Stunning wine.
Huge evocative and creamy nose. Buttery, rich and mineral like a great Meursault. Mineral, beeswax abound. Ripe apples and pears along with limestone, hazelnut and iodine. A big lovely pure aromatic spectrum. It is lightly framed with oak and the depth here is remarkable. Like drinking Meursault Tessons!
The palate has amazing density and purity. Coats your whole mouth with internal aromatics. It's ultra refined not unlike the 18 but has more sap and density all the while remaining elegant. The wine is so so mineral and full of acids. Palate reminds you the is a German White. Such killer fruit on the mid palate that is so detailed and vivid. This is stunning. Long and exquisite. Amazing delineation and purity. This is a steal at this price as at this quality level you cannot find wine in Burgundy within $20. In Burgundy maybe at $60+ you can begin to find wines this complex. This will age 10-12 years if you can keep your hands off it! Sick wine! Easily 1er Cru quality if this was Burgundy! Also it can age and will be much better in 10 years! Below is the 93 PT, WA, 2017 review.
"The 2017 Hard is an opulent, dark golden-yellow colored Chardonnay that was vinified in new (15%) and used (85%) barriques from Assmann in Germany for about 22 months. The nose is clear and elegant yet deep and intense and dark toned, with flinty and iodine notes. It is full-bodied, rich yet refined and elegant on the palate, with a palatable residual sugar of 3.7 grams per liter. This is a more baroque yet still fine and salty white with a silky, elegant texture, sustainable mineral grip and flinty salinity. This is impressive yet quite opulent (not fat!) for Ziereisen. It has 14% alcohol (which you don't taste), but combined with its richness and residual sugar, the result is a mouth-filling but less thrilling Chardonnay than in former years. Still a great wine, though. Tasted from lot L 21 19 in July 2020."- 93 Points, Stephan Reinhardt (2017)
As I finished tasting the 2015 Ziereisen Hard a few years back Hanspeter scurried off and said , "oh yeah there's a Jaspis Chardonnay now." The 2015/2016/2018 were glorious for the people that grabbed some. I missed the 2017 as Germans scooped it all up. The 2019 is stunning stunning and best yet. The 2019 Ziereisen Jaspis Chardonnay can be had for $72.99 NET! My eyes lit up. What?? Jaspis is the series of top of the line special cuvees that he does. There are two for Pinot Noir (regular and Alte Reben), a Grauburgunder, a Syrah, a Gutedel and now a Chardonnay. If you open a bottle of Jaspis from Ziereisen it's like opening a Grand Cru Burgundy from a top producer. You know it's gonna be an unforgettable experience. Oh by the way there are only on average 400-600 Jaspis bottles made each year for each cuvée. I sell every one every year as they are some of the most exciting wines in the whole book. First of all there is no wood, which was amazing as there is some (15% new) in the Hard. The material here is incredible. This reminds me of Batard-Montrachet. Rich, yet tense and noble the whole way through. Regal. Kingly. A king of a wine made by a prince of a man.
The nose is delicately mineral, wonderful white flower, iodine, nuts and a hint of butter. Just amazing. Also tons of limestone minerality harkening back to the Côte de Beaune. Stunning regal aromas. This is as aristocratic as Chardonnay gets. Every taste bud is assaulted by the inner mouth aromas. This is like Switzerland's famed Gantenbein but cheaper and way better.
The palate is incredible. Crazy creamy, buttery, textured with unreal concentration and richness. So much acidity and juiciness yet ultra refined. Explosive like few other wines with thunderous Thor-like depth. Incredible mineral detail and so much sap and complexity already but this is built to age. The wall of flavor if the wall were made of titanium. This has the depth and density to compete with anything that Burgundy has to offer. A stunning wine that has a finish that does not quit. Simply magical. Very, very limited. Below is the 94+ Stephan Reinhardt score for the 2017.
“Aged in used barriques for nearly two years, the 2017 Jaspis Chardonnay combines ripe and intense fruit with yeasty notes but shows less stony and refreshing notes compared to the Grauer Burgunder (Pinot Gris). Lush and intense on the palate, this is a pure and salty, vital and stimulating Chardonnay with ripe and elegant fruit but a young, pure, fresh and tight finish. The wine paints finesse and purity with richness and ripeness, and its juicy fruit is encountered by fine tannins. Excellent yet for me not as fascinating as the Jaspis Grauer Burgunder, which bears more secrets than the Chardonnay. 13% alcohol with 2.3 grams per liter of residual sugar. Tasted from lot L 27 19 in July 2020.” - 94+ Stephan Reinhardt, Wine Advocate (2017)
Up Next is the 2019 Ziereisen Grauburgunder "Würmlin - Jaspis" for $62.99 NET. The 2018 got 96+ Points from Stephan Reinhardt. It's made from the best vineyards from one of the best winemakers in Europe and from 60 year old vines. This is a Grand Cru/Grosses Gewachs quality wine. But it's even more. It is a wine that will change the way you think about Pinot Gris. It is also one of the greatest food wines in the world. Every time I open a bottle it is the best white wine that I've had in however many years. It is uncanny how world class this bottle is.
The nose is just stunningly elegant. It has fruit complexity with the best of them. Stunning nuanced stone fruits all over this nose. Citrus. Bergamot. Really something you can get lost in with mineral and light citrus overtones combined with it opening and opening. It has that 19 power and detail.
The palate is where the fireworks really happen. A rare wine where the palate over delivers what the nose promises. This is one of the most explosive wines I've ever had from Germany. It is like a suitcase nuke in 2018. Ridiculously intense but contained. Huge, and I mean huge freshness from acid and so much limestone combined with delicious juicy stone fruits. A massive fruit soak and such insane fruit complexity again. I know I don't talk often about fruit complexity but this is exhibit A. When you recover from that, there are incredible internal aromatics floating above with a firm mineral core. This is as graceful as 1er Cru White Burgundy from one of the big three (Chassagne / Meursault / Puligny). The wine is completely delicious (my tasting note says, "WOW, YUM") but this wine also has some serious eye-popping complexity. It is as serious a white wine as I sell. I'd open and follow over the course of an evening - this is a special, special wine from a remarkable producer.
Below is Stephan Rheinhardt's 96 Point Review for the 2018.
"From 50+-year-old vines, basket-pressed and aged in 450-liter Assmann barrels for 22 months, the salmon colored 2018 Jaspis Grauer Burgunder "Würmlin" is a pure, fine, elegant, dry and vinous Pinot Gris with delicate red fruit aromas, toast and brioche notes and great terroir expression. Tight, intense and fresh on the palate, this has a firm and persistent yet fine tannin structure and mineral vitality. This is a full-bodied, strong, potent and sustainable yet also pure, fresh and salty Pinot with an impressively stimulating finish. Possibly Ziereisen's finest 2018, it was still in good—or even great—shape after 11 days of waiting to be tasted again. 14% alcohol. Tasted in November 2020. Würmlin is the family name of the former owners of the parcel.”- 96 Points Stephan Reinhardt, Wine Advocate
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