Gimmeldinger Schlössel Spätburgunder VDP Erste Lage 2020

Wine description for the Gimmeldinger Schlössel Pinot Noir VDP Erste Lage 2020 from Christmann

Colour & appearance

Muted garnet red colour with transparent brightening towards the rim - a classic sign of a Pinot Noir that is based on Elegance instead of extraction.

Nose

Precise and cool, with a fascinating aroma of red and dark berries: Sour cherries, Sloe, Cranberries and Wild raspberries, interspersed with wild mint and a touch of Cinnamon. The wine literally floats out of the glass - delicate, beguiling, without any heaviness.

Palate

This is where the true class shows itself: precise, fresh, with a chalky minerality and salty flavours, which ground the wine and give it tension. The fruit is subtly sweet, but never overpowering. The silky tannin caresses the tongue, the wine almost dances - light-footed, feminine, with great inner harmony.

Departure

Long, cool and precise with a lingering freshness and a fine finish of red berries and Herbs.

Terroir & origin

The Gimmeldinger Castle lies to the north of the famous Meerspinne site, with a gentle east-facing slope and a slight north-facing aspect. The soil combines Lime loess and Coloured sandstone rubble - an ideal combination for mineral Pinot Noirs. The cooling air from the Gimmeldinger Valley ensures longer ripening times and precise flavours.

Grape variety & vinification

2017 on Pinot Noir the young vines already deliver impressive quality. Radical yield reduction to only 25-30 hl/ha, 30-50% Whole cluster fermentation for herbaceous tannin, 5 days of cold maceration, then two weeks of maceration. Matured for 18 months in Barrique (10% new), final maturation in stainless steel. Moderate 12.5% Alcohol - Proof that great wines do not need extraction.

Food pairing suggestions

This feminine seducer harmonises with roast duck, Pigeon or Wild fowl, Mushroom risotto, Saddle of venison with cranberries or matured Comté. Also a delight on its own.

Special features

A wine that heralds a new era of German Pinot Noir - cool, precise, Burgundian in the best sense of the word. Christmann proves once again why the winery belongs to the absolute elite of the Palatinate.