20213041_WGDE2021_ENGL

NAHE | A PORTRAIT OF THE REGION
the Nahe with its diversity of soils so
exciting.
WILD CARROTS IN THE VINEYARD
The best way to approach Nahe wine is on
foot. On the wine hiking trail from
Niederhausen to the former Royal Prussian
State Domaine, today called Gut
Hermannsberg, for instance. En route you
cannot help but take in the impressive
gradients of the steep slopes, the
construction of the dry stone walls, the
edible treats (wild carrots) of the vineyards
and the vegetative growth cycle in the
fallow parcels that sport rare, indigenous
orchids. You can also witness workers of
the world-famous Weingut Dönnhoff
cumbersomely spreading straw in the
vineyards to guard against the erosive
effects of sudden downpours. At Gut
Hermannsberg, winemaker Karsten Peter
(from the Pfalz) forges his own path:
shortened skin contact, gentle pressing,
reductive vinification in a combination of
wood and steel. The 2015 wine from the
Kupfergrube vineyard is not released for
sale until five years after harvest. But it just
became apparent again that not only Grosse
Gewächse (wines from classified, single
Weingut Dönnhoff – a fourthgeneration
family-run estate
vineyards) require some bottle age to show
their full potential. Two wines from their
own cellar, Schäfer-Fröhlich‘s estate Riesling
(!) and Traiser Rotenfels Riesling (classified
as Erste Lage/premier cru, thus mid-ranging
in price) by Weingut Dr. Crusius, both from
2015, still showed precise fruit, enlivening
acidity and great flow. And by the way,
from Weingut Dr. Crusius it is only a short
hop to the panoramic lookout atop the
Photos: Weingut Poss/Torsten Silz, provided, Diel/Hendrik Haase und die Bilder
One of the Riesling epicentres of German
viticulture: Gut Hermannsberg
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