2022 Domaine Durrmann Riesling sur Schiste Cuvée Nature
WINEMAKER: André Durrmann
REGION: Alsace, FR
VARIETY: Riesling
VITICULTURE: Certified Organic/Biodynamic
Handpicked from the certified organic & dry farmed Rebberg vineyard, direct pressed Riesling from parcels on rocky brown schist. Spontaneous fermentation & matured in stainless steel on gross lees for 9 months prior to bottling. Unfined & unfiltered.
Riesling on Schist makes its terroir apparent with a livewire acidity & snap. Rocky, chalky & mineral. Pith & pucker. Racy, high toned with a developed citrus core over wet river stones. Lots of energy & focus. Forward facing, and at pace!
Tucked away among the picturesque vistas of the storied Alsace region, lies the charming winemaking village of Andlau. A beautiful village nestled on the first slopes of the Vosges Mountains south-west of Strasbourg by 30 minutes, which is renowned for its rich viticultural heritage. Settled in the year 880AD by a monastery of nuns, a place where grapes have been cultivated for more than a thousand years! Andlau stands as a testament to centuries of winemaking tradition & innovation - and here lies Domaine Durrmann.
Domaine Durrmann was established in 1979 with a mere 1.5Ht undervine, inherited from André Durrmann's grandfather who worked as a shoemaker, to supplement his vinous & mixed farming pursuits. The absence of entrenched winemaking customs may have posed initial challenges to Anna & André Durrmann, but it also gifted them the freedom to forge a path unbound by convention.
Enter Yann Durrmann, heir to this rich legacy, who has trodden the vineyard rows since childhood & now steers the Domaine's helm with great conviction. Concerned with the preservation of their surrounds, Domaine Durrmann has been certified organic since 1998. They consider their farm as a single organism, an ecosystem in which they maintain a balance between their various flora of vines, fruit trees for juice & Eau de Vie, and grass for grazing sheep. Durrmann's vineyards are dry grown, rooted in steep & rocky slopes where their soils are left covered with grass to prevent soil erosion & to help maintain a balanced soil microbiome - maintaining their natural fertility & encouraging biodiversity.