Emerging from relative obscurity, Hermann Ludes has awed us with electrifying Rieslings that masterfully execute the wine world’s most daring balancing act. From century-old self-rooted vines, today’s 2010 single-vineyard Spätlese combines extraordinary acid and a touch of sweetness to create a breathtaking Riesling that will skip through 2050 and beyond.
While its age-defying longevity and sheer deliciousness are certainly highlights, it’s the sheer amount of history bottled up in today’s Riesling treasure that takes the spotlight. Each one of these centenarian vines, planted sometime around the First World War, are on their original rootstock. The number of vines around the world that are 100+ years old and ungrafted is a fraction so small it’s nearly indivisible. That, however, is only half of the equation—the wine still has to be made! That’s where Weingut Hermann Ludes enters, a name new to most everyone in America, but one that resonates loud and clear in the Mosel. This 2010 is a Spätlese Shangri-La that reveals exoticism, boatloads of slate minerality, and vivid, mouthwatering appeal. It has just arrived directly from Ludes’ cellar, and because it’s also a SommSelect exclusive, we’re offering it at a price that everyone can love.
[*NOTE: There’s no more after the last bottle sells. Not here, not even at the winery itself!]
Before the deluge of instant, at-your-fingertips technology, the landscape for finding new producers was much different. In the not-so-distant past, merchants would traverse empty backroads and meet a full range of foreigners in order to discover the delicious wares of unknown wine producers. And while the recent discovery of Hermann Ludes wasn’t by a fortuitous knock on a random door, it still isn’t without its charm. In the spirit of modern times, the importer for today’s offer discovered Hermann Ludes by way of Google Maps. He was absentmindedly scrolling around the Mosel River, planning out his next trip, and stumbled across Weingut Hermann Ludes. From there, he called, and eventually planned a visit!
The Ludes family isn’t a household name in the German wine world, but the family has been in the wine business for some 400 years. The main reason for its obscurity is that the estate itself wasn’t established until the mid-1900s. Further, the large majority of their vines were divvied up among 11 siblings, leaving Hermann Ludes with next to nothing. Over the decades, he and subsequent generations have worked tirelessly to buy back all these parcels.
Back in its heyday, Weingut Hermann Ludes was in a cadre of high-quality Mosel producers that is now colloquially known as the “Bernkasteler Ring” (they left in 1993). Many estates in this group are highly celebrated to this day, but some, like Hermann Ludes, remain under the radar. Still, the Ludes family kept crafting Riesling from their precious sites and cellaring what they couldn’t sell; for that, we extend a big thank you to the ebbs and flows of consumer trends! That’s how today’s 2010 “Bruderschaft” Riesling Spätlese came about.
The village of Klüsserath lies just across the river from Weingut Hermann Ludes’ home base in Thörnich. The massively sprawling vineyard of Bruderschaft is essentially the sole calling card of Klüsserath, but they control two of the finest parcels. Ultra-ripe grapes with sky-high acidity were handpicked at very low yields in late October of 2010. Traditional work in the vineyard should logically mean the same for the cellar, and that’s exactly how this 2010 was produced. Only ambient yeasts were used for natural fermentation in stainless steel—which took six months—and then it was allowed to rest further before bottling. It then laid to rest in their cellar until the beginning of 2019.
When discussing today’s special 2010 with Julian Ludes, he kept remarking on the astonishing levels of acidity in the wine. Seriously: The residual sugar is washed away by a roaring cascade of acidity, making your mouth water in an instant. It reminds me of sunny Miami Beach, where a 30-minute torrential downpour can have you wading through the streets knee-deep, and within hours it’s back to dry and beautiful. That’s the sensation you get with each sip of this wine: intense, powerful, and filled with unrivaled freshness. After a quick decant to blow off any nerves, pour Ludes’ 2010 “Bruderschaft” Riesling Spätlese in all-purpose stems around 50 degrees and prepare yourself for a wild, revitalizing ride. Candied lime, fleshy white peach, green mango, Asian pear, and salt-preserved Meyer lemon dash out with petrol, crushed shells, citrus blossoms, and wet slate right on their heels. Again, there is so much acidity and texture to this medium-bodied, off-dry (but feels dry) Riesling. It is incredibly refined and layered with generous sun-kissed fruits commingling with racy, crushed rock minerality. This will thrive for decades to come—Julian says until 2050, easily—so don’t go drinking all your bottles in a hurry, no matter how tempting it may be. Enjoy!
