Dönnhoff Riesling Dry VDP Gutswein 2023

Dönnhoff Riesling Dry VDP Gutswein QbA, Nahe, Germany, 2023

Grape: 100% Riesling, steep slopes of stony/volcanic/slate & quartzite soil, 15-40 year old vines, hand harvested, 50hl/ha yield, fermentation and maturation in stainless steel & large oak barrels, 4.9g/L residual sugar (dry)

Producer Tasting Note:

The wine smells wonderfully of yellow fruits, apricots and peaches, as well as ripe apples, but also mandarin and lime zest, as well as a wonderful minty note. In this wine, too, we can sense the fine minerality that Dönnhoffs bring out so wonderfully. On the palate we experience great freshness, the acidity is lively and ripe, then lots of citrus fruit, lime, orange, delicate phenols, it already has a nice pull, it's fun, juicy and perfectly balanced.

If only all producers' "entry level" wines were this good!

Critics' Tasting Notes:

"The 2023 Riesling was picked in the Oberhäuser Felsenberg, on porphyry and melaphyr, and in the Oberhauser Kieselberg, which, despite its name, is Tonschiefer (shale). The wine is made 90% in stainless steel and the rest in neutral wood. The golden wine sprays with a fruity freshness that holds a crunchy green apple, Reine Claude plum, overtones of blossom and joyful, sunny fruitiness. The palate is super-slender, dry and sprightly, carrying all this fruit and freshness, and it is totally straight-laced and clear. (Bone-dry)" Drink 2024-2034

89/100 points, Anne Krebiehl, VINOUS, October 2024

"Fantastic brilliance and a wealth of delicate stone-fruit and citrus aromas, also floral notes! Barely medium-bodied, but with all the attributes that make a dry Nahe riesling a thing of beauty to behold. Drink or hold. Screw cap."

93/100 points, James Suckling, 2024