Last month I achieved a long-held ambition to visit that most famous of German wine regions, the Mosel, specifically the sub-region known as Mittelmosel. Centred on Bernkastel-Kues and stretching from Schleich to Pünderich, the region boasts stunning beauty and dizzyingly steep slate slopes – up to almost 80 degrees, appearing near-vertical. The best of these slopes face south, with the vines held as if by a toaster to the sun and close to the river. The southerly aspect and reflection of light from the river ensure that the Riesling grapes ripen. The slate rock of the slopes is both heat retaining and reflecting, further contributing to ripeness whilst also delivering a distinct “wet-stone” minerality to wines offering an extraordinary and often linear purity.
Vineyard slopes behind Bernkastel
With limited time my explorations were necessarily narrowly focused and I chose to visit just four great VDP producers: JJ Prüm and Dr Loosen in Bernkastel, Fritz Haag in Brauneberg, and biodynamic producer Clemens Busch in Puenderich.
I was first acquainted with the Pradikat wines of JJ Prüm at a tasting of 2009 German Riesling at Magnum Society in March 2023 a comparison of Kabinett, Spatlese and Auslese wines from the two perhaps greatest Mittelmosel vineyards, Graacher Himmelreich and Wehlener Sonnenuhr. My lingering memory was wines of searing purity, pristine elegance and an astonishing amalgam of intensity and lightness. The Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spatlese was my favourite. So much so that I leapt at the opportunity to buy the 2015 vintage of the same wine at auction last year.
Outside the JJ Prüm Estate
Joh. Jos. Prüm was founded in 1911 and is currently run by Dr Katharina Prum (her doctorate is in law). The Prum family have lived in Wehlen for more than 400 years and Katharina is the great granddaughter of Johann Josef, the founder. The estate has 14 hectares planted in Riesling and its holdings in the Graacher Himmelreich, which lies above and on either side of the village of Graach, and the Wehlener Sonnenuhr, on the opposite side of the river from Wehlen, are the most important. Both are classified as Grosse Lage, the German equivalent of Grand Cru. The Graacher Himmelreich is located 110 to 260 metres above sea level and is oriented SW towards the river in a moderately steep slope of 45-65%. The soil is mainly blue and grey slate that quickly warms up and stores heat and is crisscrossed by water veins that supply water all the year around. Most vines are wire trained but some are single pole. The Wehlener Sonnenuhr runs between 110 and 320 metres above sea level, steeply inclined with SSW facing slopes of 60-100%! The soil is pure Devonian slate weathered soil with high rock content and medium depth. Most of the vines are cultivated using traditional single pole training. More than 70% of the Prüm vines are on their own roots.
The stunningly steep slopes of the Wehlener Sonnenuhr Grosse Lage
We were perhaps fortunate to join a previously arranged tasting with an important Prüm customer from Australia, hosted by the wonderful Carine Patricio, eleven wines in total, all characterized by the same racy purity, minerality and astonishing amalgam of lightness and intensity. All the wines are fermented in stainless steel, with handpicked grapes (as if anything else was possible!) harvested for optimal ripeness. We very much appreciated that Katharina also took time to introduce herself and talk about the wines and the JJ Prüm approach.
It would be pretentious of me to provide all my tasting notes here and in any case, there is insufficient space, so allow me to describe three of my (difficult to choose) favourites from the generous lineup.
The 2019 Bernkasteler Badstube was quite pale in the glass and presented bright fruity aromas of peach and ripe grapefruit. Light on the palate with initial white peach, apple and lime zest flavours, mouthwatering acidity and a slightly saline minerality, it has a long slightly bitter finish that begs for food.
The 2020 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spatlese had apple pear and flinty aromas with some floral notes; on the palate, youthful vibrant fruit hinting of lime marmalade, crisp acidity with a slightly saline note, precise, focused, elegant and long, it will clearly repay long cellaring.
The 2015 Graacher Himmelreich Auslese had intense lemon, peach and pineapple notes on the nose with a spice and mineral edge. On the palate the rich, honeyed, tropical fruit notes of mango and kumquat balanced with an almost piercing acidity and a finish that just went on and on, nowhere near its peak yet!
Our J J Prüm tasting lineup.
Our second visit, and on the same day was the famed and much higher production Dr Loosen. Fortune again smiled on us, in that our tasting was hosted by the lovely Lena Funke, Export Sales Manager who has previously worked for our top NZ Central Otago winery Felton Road. Lena took us through an educative selection of ten wines showcasing a sample of the full production.
The Dr Loosen estate has been in the family for over 200 years and seven of their eight major vineyards were designated as Grosse Lage or Grand Crus in the 1868 Prussian classification of Mosel vineyards. Many of the vines are over 120 years old and all are on their own roots. When Ernst Loosen assumed ownership in 1988 his mission was to achieve intense world-class wines and to achieve this, he dramatically restricted crop size, prohibited chemical fertilisers, ensured strict fruit selection and employed gentle cellar practices that allow the wines to develop with minimal intervention. His dry wines are spontaneously fermented in oak Fuders and aged on lees without batonnage or racking for two years, before racking, bottling and retention in bottle for another 1-3 years before release.
The Dr Loosen Estate
The first two wines tasted at the basic Gutswein level provided a stark contrast between the main two different soils” blue slate and red slate. The 2023 Blauschiefer Riesling Trocken (Blue Slate Dry Riesling) featured an aromatic citrusy nose with a mineral edge and on the palate, lemon, lime zest and white peach fruit flavours with a zesty acidity and a crispy dry mineral-edged finish. The 2023 Rotschiefer Riesling Trocken (Red Slate Dry Riesling) was noticeably more smoky with grapefruit, peach and some strawberry aromas. On the palate it was bone dry with a grippier, stony acidity than the Blue Slate, with a white pepper edge over the lime zest and herb flavours.
Of the single vineyard Grosse Gewachs wines, the Erdener Treppchen stood out for intensity. From 120-160 year old vines on red slate soils it had distinct wildflower, spiced peach and honey-edged green apple and lime aromas. On the palate, it was dry with crisp acidity, a firm phenolic grip and a focused long mineral finish.
Tasting the Dr Loosen 2018 Beerenauslese with Lena, and the full tasting lineup.
It was a special treat to taste the 2018 Riesling Beerenauslese. Made from botrytised grapes from 4 vineyards, fermented in stainless steel, it had aromas of honey, peach and pineapple with hints of candied citrus peel and dried mushrooms. On the palate a beautifully balanced rich sweetness and crisp acidity, with distinct flavours of honey, peach, pineapple and marmalade, and an intensely long citrus finish.
The next day we ventured upriver to the town of Brauneberg and the estate of Fritz Haag. Here we met Jens Spaeter, who led us through an astonishing array of seventeen wines across the full spectrum of production. Weingut Fritz Haag has 29 hectares of vines on four vineyards centred across the river from the town. Just over 6 of these are within the Brauneberger Juffer and 3 hectares are in the Brauneberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr, which is considered by experts to be his best site. Both are steep south facing slopes with weathered blue slate soils marbled with veins of iron oxide. The Juffer Sonnenuhr is the steepest and most south-facing of the Brauneberg hillside, with the stoniest soils and a distinct microclimate owing to the concave mirror effect of its steep slopes surrounded by cliffs and lined with shallow vertical troughs.
Typical iron oxide tinted blue slate of the Brauneberger Juffer
The Haag family has made wines here since 1605, and the estate is run by Oliver and Jessica Haag. Oliver graduated in Oenology from Geisenheim and completed apprenticeships at Dönnhoff and Karthäuserhof. He took over in 2005 from his father Wilhelm who was named German Winemaker of the year in 1994 by the Gault Millau Guide to German Wines. Oliver uses both old oak and stainless steel in the fermentation process and grapes are hand-harvested in several passes as required. Wines are produced at all VDP levels and Pradikat wines and I felt with all 17 wines tasted there was a distinctive “house” style characterised by a slightly herbal edge to their mineral slate and vibrant acid character.
Our visit to Weingut Fritz Haag began with a view over the Brauneberger Juffer site.
The tasting commenced with a sparkling Riesling made in the traditional method, 2018 Riesling Brut. This was a rather interesting bubbles, lemon gold in the glass with citrus, nectarine and yellow apple aromas with some leesy notes on the nose. On the palate it was dry and crisp with a fine creamy mousse and bone-dry slightly herbal and saline finish.
The 2023 Brauneberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr Trocken Grosses Gewachs was light lemon-straw in the glass with delicate aromas of Meyer lemon, kaffir lime leaf, white flowers and wet stone minerality. On the palate it was lively and richly expressive, yet linear and tight with a long and intense yet delicate mineral finish.
The 2023 Kestener Paulinshofberg Trocken Grosses Gewachs was light lemon straw in the glass with complex aromas of grapefruit, sage and minerals tinged with a hint of Earl Grey tea and aniseed. On the palate, plush and juicy ripe pear and grapefruit flavours with a firm mineral backbone and a long firm slightly phenolic finish.
The 2024 Brauneberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese Goldkapsel was a special wine from a challenging vintage. Rich aromas of honey, dried mango and orange marmalade mingled with white flowers, wet stone and ginger. On the palate rich and honeyed but perfectly balanced with fresh acidity and a lift of mineral complexity on the long, lush finish.
The extensive lineup of VDP and Pradikat wines tasted with Jens.
Our last day concluded with a visit to the biodynamic producer Clemens-Busch in Pünderich. Clemens and his wife Rita inherited his parents’ winery and vineyards in 1984, including two hectares in the Pundericher Marienburg, a South-SE facing hillside vineyard with mainly grey slate soils across the river from the winery. Since then, they have purchased adjoining plots and now own 16 of the 25 hectares which constitute the Marienburg and 20 hectares of vineyards altogether. On taking over they immediately decided to convert to organic viticulture and in 2005 fully transitioned to biodynamic production. Their goal is to produce wines of the highest quality and individuality which they believe is best achieved through “respectful interaction with the environment”.
The Clemens Busch Estate Building
Biological diversity provides the key to vine vitality and health. Rows are beneficially interplanted, and they use various teas and herbal mixtures to strengthen the vines along with extensive fertilising with compost to build humus. The vines are mostly worked by hand and harvested individually for optimal grape ripeness and health. Most of the wines are fermented with ambient yeasts in the traditional 1000 litre Fuders, although some stainless is also used.
Within the above-mentioned Marienburg, they have vines in the Rothenpfad, a SE facing site with red slate soils situated above the Punderich viaduct; the Fahrlay, a stony and terraced south-facing slope with hard, blue slate located right next to the ferry pier; the Falkenlay, a very protected area between the Fahrlay and Rothenpfad with grey slate, crisscrossed in the rock terrace parts with ferrous layers; the Felsterrasse, comprising 5 terraces nestled between the rocky outcrops to the side of the Falkenlay with 70 year old vines; and Raffles, a name used to describe a small selection of vines from a terrace of the Falkenlay on higher ground which produces a wine of exceptional concentration and purity.
The Pundericher Marienburg
The gracious Oda Borchert led us through a representative tasting of ten wines, and once again I can only describe a few of these.
The 2023 Ortswein Dry Riesling from the Red Slate, Pundericher Vom Roten Schiefer Riesling Trocken impressed with its herbal energy. On the nose, lime zest and lemon curd with a distinctive herbal edge. On the palate tight, linear and zesty with a saline minerality, hints of ginger spice and a long, herbal finish.
The 2023 Marienburg Falkenlay Riesling Grosses Gewachs was a standout for me with its peacock tail finish. Pale lemon green in the glass it presented a fragrant nose of lemon curd, yellow apple, spice and slate minerality. On the palate entry was a little restrained and herbal, opening to a real burst of juicy citrus and ripe nectarine flavours and an exceptionally long bold finish.
The 2024 Marienburg Riesling Kabinett had an appealing nose of peach and lemon pith with some floral elements. On the palate slightly salty, sweet citrus flavours predominated with a lovely juicy acidity and gentle minerality that was simply, deliciously, even dangerously, drinkable.
For a fascinating and totally enjoyable introduction to Mosel Riesling I could scarcely have asked for more. Four great estates with their own distinctive styles, all producing excellent and oh, so drinkable wines! It was very hard, albeit necessary to spit. If drinking such wonderful wines was not in itself sufficient attraction to visit, the stunning natural beauty of the river valley and a plethora of interesting historic buildings including castles with breathtaking views combine to make an irresistible siren call.
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