Dreamy 2020 Rieslings from Dönnhoff

From modest beginnings on their family farm over 200 years ago, the Dönnhoff name is now regarded as one of the finest when it comes to German Riesling. Cornelius Dönnhoff is now fourth generation at the helm of the family’s 25 hectares of prime vineyard holdings and the set of 2020 vintage wines are nothing short of exceptional.

Dear Reader,

In the dry region of Nahe, Dönnhoff chooses not to irrigate their vineyards in order for the roots to push deep down into the soil in search of nutrients. The Riesling vines are mostly old clones, trellised low to the ground so that they are exposed to the warmth given off by the stony topsoil. Grapes are harvested exclusively by hand and are at the cellar, ready to be pressed, within three hours to preserve maximum freshness.

Run-off juice from pressing undergoes spontaneous fermentation in a combination of traditional German casks (1,200-litre stuck and 2,400-litre doppelstuck) and stainless steel tanks. In bottle, Dönnhoff’s Rieslings possess rapier-like precision and the further you go up the quality rungs, the complexity and expression of terroir are more apparent.

We have just twelve mixed cases of the 2020 Rieslings which include six bottles of the 2021 straight Trocken. The wines are astoundingly good and ratings and tasting notes from Wine Advocate will attest to this. Then, available on its own, is the 2021 vintage of the Trocken (dry) which, at less than R300 a bottle, punches way above the price tag. Not included in the mixed case is a very small amount of the Riesling Niederhauser Hermannshohle Spätlese 2020. There are just six bottles available at R695 per bottle, so please speak to your account manager if you would like a bottle or two.

Get your orders in fast to not miss out on some world-class Riesling this Summer.

Stephan Reinhardt for Wine Advocate
”…super clear, fresh and flinty on the precise and reductive nose that shows ripe but focused fruit with white peach and apricot aromas. Light and highly stimulating on the palate, this is a salty, crisp and grippy Riesling with juicy fruit and the mineral expression of the Nahe.”

Stephan Reinhardt for Wine Advocate
”…opens enormously pure and stony as well as citric on the earthy nose that is a terrific representative for the clayish slate terroir. Complex and juicy on the palate, this is a tensioned, finely reductive yet very intense and structured dry Riesling with fine phenolic grip and an expressive finish with salty-piquant and phenolic acidity. An impressive wine.”

Stephan Reinhardt for Wine Advocate
”…clear, pure and intense on the nose like a fine Italian perfume on wet, crushed stones. Lush and round on the palate, this is a dense yet very delicate and dangerously juicy and stimulating mineral Spätlese that is irresistible. Impossible to spit out. This long and salty Spätlese is singing.”

Stephan Reinhardt for Wine Advocate
”…pure but ripe and intense on the nose that reveals ripe and stewed apple aromas with a fine phenolic spiciness and reductive richness. Juicy-piquant and salty-crystalline on the palate, this is an intense yet very elegant and still slightly astringent dry Riesling with fine tannic grip and good tension.”

Stephan Reinhardt for Wine Advocate
”…magic. Pure, refined and aristocratic on the flinty, slate-dominated and slightly herbal nose that is populated by crushed stones and tiny mint leaves, while the bright fruit is perfectly interwoven with terroir-driven flavours. Racy, juicy-piquant and intense on the palate, this is a noble, highly elegant and complex Hermannshöhle with a long, intense and complex yet again very refined and floating finish. A genius of a Spätlese where everything is perfectly interwoven to an unspeakable beauty.”

Stephan Reinhardt for Wine Advocate
‘’…opens with a pure and fascinating mix of melting or crushed slate and ripe, concentrated white fruits. Vital and fresh on the palate, this is a racy, piquant and tensioned, almost irritatingly nervous but terroir-driven Riesling with stimulating salinity and a crystalline, very pure and challenging structure.’’