Balthasar Ress ‘Von Unserm’ Pinot Noir Trocken 2018

Description

A passion play from Ress cellar master, Stephan Sänger, who absolutely adores Pinot Noir. Fruit is taken from some of the best vineyards in the Rheingau, fermented in stainless steel and left to rest for 4-6 months before bottling.

This is spectacularly aromatic for a Pinot, intense aromas of wild strawberries and morello cherries mix it up with notes of vanilla, tobacco leaf and dried flowers. There’s an initial fruit sweetness on the palate reminiscent of currant jam, delicately juicy with herbal spices, herbaceous and peppery with fine tannins, light wood nuances and old leather, and a bone dry, earthy finish.

The term ‘von unserm’ (‘from us’) on the label here carries with it a 150-year-old back-story. Balthasar Ress opened an inn and restaurant in 1870 and grew grapevines as a sideline. He wanted to differentiate his own wines from the other wines on his menu and gave them the name ‘von meines’, meaning ‘from me’. Since then, every year a wine has been produced that bears this name and today it’s the standard bearer for that varietal from the Ress family winery.