AdamsWein, Grauburgunder Ingelheim, 2022, 750ml

Description

Simone is a young winemaker with a husband and two small children, running a 10ha farm she took over when her dad passed away in 2010. Her vineyards all lie in Ingelheim in the far northern Rheinhessen where a mix of flat and gently rolling vineyards of clay and limestone enjoy a cool microclimate tempered by the Rhein river, just 5km away. The village sits in the “knee” of the valley, protected from rain and inclement weather. Interestingly, the vineyards are on east-west facing slopes, not north-south ones, which benefits air circulation.

The winemaking is simple and patterned after traditional Burgundy:  natural fermentations in steel, maturation in big barrels for the village wines and barriques for the single site ones, 12-18 months of aging on the lees, no fining, no filtering, and only a modest dose of SO2 added at bottling. There is no gutswein here, only wines of terroir.

The Grauburgunder is grown about 5km south of the Rhein on clay/limestone, macerated briefly on the skins, aged one year in steel and barrel. Riveting Pinot Gris, unlike any other: a beautiful shade of pale pink, more precise and zestier than the norm, gently framed by skin tannins and perfectly balanced at 12.5%. Incredible food wine.