Tim Atkin, Master of Wine and award-winning wine journalist, broadcaster and commentator
"Ziereisen is a little bit like Bayern Munich. Another dimension of complexity and expression."
Stephan Reinhardt, The Wine Advocate German Reviewer 11/6/15 (Facebook)German Wine Collection of the Year, 2015 Gault Milleau
You all know the story of the genius winemaker in Baden who scored on a par with Burgundy's best in a famous 2011 blind tasting. I had planned to wait until May for a second offer but the best wine goes on sale in Germany in March and I wanted to sell his top wine (only 600 or so bottles) before the Germans snapped it up (which they will). Because this wine is emblematic of my theory that the Germans are making pinot noirs on a par with the great winemakers in Burgundy, I need you to try this.
These wines are truly stunning technical examples of winemaking. Focused in a way that great Chablis or great Champagne is, which is very rare in red wine. They also happen to be delicious, complex wines that are more classically Burgundian than anything I've had in Germany from a flavor profile standpoint. The wines are among the most expensive German Pinot Noirs but Hanspeter was extremely generous with his pricing because he wants his best wines to be tasted by American Burgundy collectors. The only reason that these are not already famous throughout the US is that the Germans, Swiss and English bid up the prices and through three tier, the top wines would all be close to or over $100.
The first wine is the Ziereisen Spatburgunder Jaspis Alte Reben 2011 ($69.99 each on a 3 pack). When I first sipped this wine, the aromatics were so powerful my head literally snapped back like I had been hit on the forehead with a sledgehammer. The internal aromatics are really off the charts. The nose is a wonderful combination of licorice and sweet wood. The palate is plummy with incredible licorice overtones. Your mouth is literally overflowing with fruit and licorice aromatics. The finish stays with you for a minute. This is Hanspeter's top wine and really illustrates the power and majesty that his wines can attain. Jaspis is what he calls his highest end wines - the wine is a blend of the best grapes from several vineyards. I managed to obtain a very small allocation (he only sells 600 or so bottles). This wine tastes like Grand Cru Burgundy all the way. And great Grand Cru Burgundy at that. If you want to really see how good German Pinot Noir can be, this is one of the bottles that should be at the top of your list. Heck, if you're tired of paying several multiples of this for Grand Cru red Burgundy, you should buy it. It is one of the most expensive red wines in Germany but thanks to a generous discount and direct from the winery pricing, this is a stunning value.
The bottle I tasted had been open a day so this may need a decant. In any case, you can drink this over 2 days.
The second wine is the 2013 Ziereisen Grauer Burgunder which can be had for as little as $17.99 each on a 4-pack. An absolutely fantastic bottle of wine and a total steal given the price. I wanted to offer a white to give people a hint of the heights that Ziereisen can reach with white wines.
"Deep, clear, intense and with serious mineral flavors on the nose, the 2014 Grauer Burgunder (Pinot Gris) is a medium to full-bodied, lovely, racy, salty and firmly structured wine from 21-year-old vines on jurassic chalk. The finish is long, intense, full of tension, and displays a dense and well concentrated texture. This is another Best Buy of this family estate. " 91 points, Stephan Reinhardt, The Wine Advocate (Reinhardt appears to have been unaffected by recent Wine Advocate grade inflation so this is a 1990's curve rating)
The level of awe that Hanspeter Ziereisen is held in by other German winemakers is rare . That and that fact that he was by the Swiss border made me think that he was extra special precise, like some combination of a Mercedes Benz and a $25,000 mechanical watch. I showed up on time to the second. All of my concerns were dispelled when I met Hanspeter. Bounding is the best word I can think of to describe him. He was bounding all over the place. They did not have a bottle of a particular wine in the tasting room so he bounded onto his bicycle, peddled furiously and a few minutes later showed up with the wine, leapt off the bicycle and bounded back to the table, opening the wine in almost one continuous motion.
Hanspeter is also very, very open and friendly in almost an American-like way. He invited me to a harvest lunch of soup, lemon chicken with olives and feta (very tasty) and several other hearty dishes.
The oldest cellar at the winery was built in 1783. Hanspeter took over wine production at Ziereisen in 1991 (he was formerly a carpenter and built most of the furniture in the winery). He has expanded over the past decade or so and seems to have little caves of storage all over the city (he is almost finished with a giant modern cellar).
Ziereisen Grauer Burgunder 2014
- $19.99 ($71.96 4-pack)
Ziereisen Jaspis Alte Reben Spatburgunder 2011 - $72.99
($209.97 3-pack) (LIMITED)
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