Riesling Oestricher Klosterberg 1G Erste Lage 2022

Wine Description for Riesling Oestricher Klosterberg 1G Erste Lage 2022 by Peter Jakob Kühn

Colour & Appearance

An intense straw yellow in the glass.

Nose

The nose opens with a subtle, smoky reduction. Behind this, fresh lemon and citrus zest emerge, alongside white elderberry and crisp pip fruit. A fine acidity combines with a delicate iodine note and a very quiet hint of petrol.

Palate

On the palate, this Riesling presents itself wonderfully fresh, juicy and with a silky texture. The acidity operates finely and subtly in the background, yet structures the wine masterfully. The interplay of reductive and slightly oxidative nuances is fascinating – a style reminiscent of the great wines of the Jura. The creamy richness and vibrant freshness are perfectly balanced.

Finish

The wine bids farewell with a distinctly clear, salty and long-lasting finish.

Terroir & Origin

The Erste Lage Oestricher Klosterberg owes its name to the former Cistercian convent of Gottesthal. The vines stand in a south-southwest facing site at an altitude of 160 metres with a slope of 15 to 20 percent. The soil is characterised by calcareous loess, terrace sediments, clay marl and quartz pebbles, which lends the wine its salty structure.

Grape Variety & Vinification

This single-varietal Riesling comes from biodynamic cultivation according to Demeter guidelines. Following selective hand-harvesting and a gentle, multi-hour whole-cluster pressing, spontaneous fermentation took place. The wine matured for 16 months on the full lees in traditional, large Doppelstückfass casks (2,440 litres) with minimal sulphur addition.

Food Pairings

Excellent with steamed turbot with a delicate beurre blanc, pan-seared scallops or a classic veal sweetbreads with lemon-caper butter.

Special Features

The special feature is the stylistic proximity to the Alsatian school and the Jura: through his apprenticeship years at Zind-Humbrecht, Peter Bernhard Kühn brings an extremely fine intuition for extraction into the bottle. An intellectual, wonderfully unagitated Riesling far removed from the loud fruit mainstream.