Spätburgunder -N- 2023

Wine description for Spätburgunder -N- 2023 by Michael Andres

Character

A Spätburgunder of austere elegance, showcasing the cool side of the Palatinate. Michael Andres’s N line stands for Natural, No Filtration, No Limits – here, a red wine is born that does not put fruit in the foreground, but rather the mineral structure of the coloured sandstone. It appears cool rather than opulent, with fine tannins and an acidity that tastes of citrus and stone. Not a wine for instant gratification, but one that needs time in the glass and then opens up in layers.

Terroir & Origin

The grapes come from the steep slopes of the Mittelhaardt, where Michael Andres has cultivated seven hectares across five individual vineyard sites since 1993 – including the Deidesheimer Mäushöhle, one of the region’s last terraced vineyards. Coloured sandstone with a south-easterly exposure shapes these wines with a cool minerality reminiscent of wet stone. The sites are among the highest in the area, and whilst other growers long ago abandoned the terraces, Andres holds fast to his 0.45 hectares. Biodynamic farming since 2006 is, for him, pragmatic manual labour: horsetail tea against fungal diseases, horn manure in spring, harvesting according to the lunar calendar.

Grape Variety & Vinification

Spätburgunder – the German name for Pinot Noir – finds a distinctive expression in the cool coloured sandstone sites of the Palatinate. At Andres, it is made as part of the N line, where he works with wild yeasts and spontaneous fermentation without additives. The wines are bottled unfined and unfiltered, sometimes reductive and closed, sometimes marked by tannins. The 2023 reveals the winemaker’s signature: precision over volume, character over crowd-pleasing. The 13% alcohol feels integrated, not dominant.

Food Pairings

The cool structure and fine tannins make this Spätburgunder a versatile food companion. It pairs well with pan-fried duck breast with red cabbage, rack of lamb with a herb crust, or wild mushrooms on polenta. Mature Comté or smoked trout with horseradish also find a worthy counterpart in it. The mineral tension complements roasted vegetables and robust herbs – a wine that demonstrates at the table what the Palatinate can do.