It would be an understatement to say that we’re big supporters of the wines from Baden, in the far southwestern corner of Germany, near the French Alsatian border. With plenty of sunshine and mineral rich, volcanic soils it’s a perfect spot for producing wines of depth, power, and character that are NOT made from Riesling. The vast majority of the time we focus on the excellent Pinot Noirs (aka Spätburgunder in German), but they also excel at the other Pinots, including Meunier (see yesterday's discovery!) but especially Gris and Blanc, the latter of which is our focus today. Known as Weissburgunder, it can make elegant, refreshing wines with true mineral depth, especially when made at a highly acclaimed, historic estate like Weingut Bercher. This is not just an “interesting” white wine, it’s a truly special, profoundly complex white wine, and it’s a great value to boot!
The Kaiserstuhl is perhaps the best known sub region in Baden, where a series of steep, volcanic hills fall towards the Rhine river. The picturesque hamlet of Burkheim is situated at the foot of those hills and less than a mile from the river which also marks the border with France. No surprise then that it is the family of Pinot grape varieties that thrive in those sunny, mineral laden, hillside vineyards. The Bercher family knows Kaiserstuhl like the back of their hand: The clan can trace its crest and its history in Baden back to 1457, and 300 years later it was Franz Michael Bercher who established the Weingut Bercher. Today it is cousins Arne and Martin Bercher who are the 10th generation of winemakers to helm this historic estate. The family farms about 26 hectares of vineyards, and as mentioned their focus is almost exclusively on Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, and Pinot Blanc.
The overarching goal for the Bercher estate is to highlight the special terroirs that they farm–Jechtingen (loess) and Burkheim (volcanic). For their Weissburgunder it’s all volcanic all the time. The hand-harvest fruit is fermented in stainless steel tanks and then aged in those same tanks for about six months with frequent stirring of the lees. The lees contact and the volcanic soil contribute to a smoky, mineral driven take on Pinot Blanc.
Serve chilled in an all-purpose glass and the crisp, crunchy orchard fruits and citrus zest will start to pop immediately, but as the wine warms a bit the full spectrum of flavours will emerge: White peach pit, green apple, raw almond, honeysuckle, acacia flower, and waves of smoky, salty minerality. The texture becomes a bit more honeyed and full as the wine opens, but the core of zippy acidity and rocky minerals never dissipates. Try it with some salmon carpaccio, or even asparagus when the season arrives!
