Shelter Winery “Spätburgunder”

BADEN, GERMANY |  2021

One could spend a lifetime just learning about Pinot Noir. 

After all, the term “terroir” or the wines ability to transmit the environment the grapes are grown in, is most often used when describing Pinot Noir.

While Burgundy may be the holy grail for Pinot Noir, and terroir, often spoken about when it comes to this region, there are many other places where this grape is just starting to be understood.

Germany is certainly one of those places. 

Spätburgunder is the local German name for Pinot Noir, and it is grown in various terroirs throughout the country. One of the most famous and influential regions for the grape is Baden, located due south of the city of Frankfurt, but actually quite close to Alsace in France, just due east of the city of Colmar. 

That is where you will find Kaiserstuhl, a renowned area for Pinot Noir, often producing quite a robust and rich style of the grape. It is just northeast of here that Hans-Bert Espe and Silke Wolf started their winery in 2003 on the site of a former military airport. The half hour drive northeast into their vineyards in Kenzingen and Malterdingen, yields a different style from those vineyards in Kaiserstuhl. After all Hans-Bert and Silke are more moved by, and try to produce Pinot Noir with elegance, and without a bunch of make-up from oak. The cooling winds from the Black Forest, as well as the limestone and loess soil help them in their effort.

This couple makes a trio of Spätburgunder that includes a value bottling under the “Lovely Lily” label, their top wine, the “N114” and this seriously complex and delicious bottle that sits in the middle and offers the extreme quality of the higher end, but at a more approachable price. For us here at Le Midi, this is the wine to know from Shelter.

High toned red fruit and a touch of herbal spice on the nose, leads into a silky, elegant mouthfeel with a continuation of those red fruit and earth notes. What a delicious wine! Pair this at the dinner table with grilled duck breasts for a great Fall dinner.