2018 Spätburgunder ‘S’ Weingut Meyer-Näkel, Ahr, Germany – £38.10, thewinebarn.co.uk
Iris Ellmann runs The Wine Barn and she is a German wine dynamo. Her website features a collection of estates from all over the country, covering all styles and grape varieties, and I can highly recommend looking at it if you are curious to discover more about top-flight German wines. I attended a portfolio tasting of Iris’s wines the other day and came across this utter stunner.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
It is a beautiful pinot noir that won a mighty score in my notes. It manages to balance resplendent mid-palate fruit density with a sonorous aroma and cool, long finish. Germany is slowly becoming a force to reckon with in pinot noir and there are a good few world-class wines made there, but they tend to be fearfully expensive. Having said that, too many are still lean and foresty, so when buoyant, silky, exotically proportioned wine like this comes along, I sit up and pay attention.
Meyer-Näkel is a pinot noir specialist and there are more expensive versions than my chosen ‘S’ cuvée in its portfolio. These Grand Cru wines load more oak onto their framework and I feel that this unbalances the whole and cramps their exuberance. This is why I love ‘S’ so much. With only 50% new barrels employed for 12 months, the oak merely seasons the ripe fruit and allows it to sing in the glass. This is a perfectly balanced pinot noir and represents great value for money.
Matthew Jukes is a winner of the International Wine & Spirit Competition’s Communicator of the Year (matthewjukes.com)
This article was originally published in MoneyWeek
-
Taps could run dry in drought-stricken TehranUnder the Radar President warns that unless rationing eases water crisis, citizens may have to evacuate the capital
-
Alaska faces earth-shaking loss as seismic monitoring stations shutterIN THE SPOTLIGHT NOAA cuts have left the western seaboard without a crucial resource to measure, understand and predict tsunamis
-
10 great advent calendars for everyone (including the dog)The Week Recommends Countdown with cocktails, jams and Legos
-
The best sherries to try this autumnThe Week Recommends The warming tipple from sunny Spain is an underrated cold-weather staple
-
The rise of English sparkling wineThe Week Recommends As UK-based brands give champagne a run for its money, here’s everything you need to know about choosing the right bottle
-
Rosorange: the chic 'love child' of orange wine and roséThe Week Recommends Peachy to look at and crisp to drink, here's to the wine of the summer
-
Friendship: 'bromance' comedy starring Paul Rudd and Tim RobinsonThe Week Recommends 'Lampooning and embracing' middle-aged male loneliness, this film is 'enjoyable and funny'
-
The best rosé wines to try this summerThe Week Recommends Warm weather means it's pink wine's moment in the sun
-
The jalapeño wine trend taking TikTok by stormThe Week Recommends Scatter a few chilli slices into your sauvignon blanc for a subtle and refreshing kick
-
Wine-tasting in TuscanyThe Week Recommends From biodynamic vineyards to historic cellars, the picturesque region is a wine lover's dream
-
A wine-themed tour of beautiful UruguayThe Week Recommends Secret paradise in South America boasts beautiful vineyards
