The Ungeheuer of Forst is one of Germany’s most famous vineyard sites. Riesling from here was poured at the opening ceremony of the Suez Canal in Egypt in 1869. The soil is based on sandstone with an ancient coral reef and volcanic basalt on top. Fermented and aged in 500l oak barrels for 10 months. Dry apricot, earthy notes, and a hint of smoke on the nose resolve on a palate that is balanced and lengthy, with a strong umami character to balance out the flinty minerality and extremely restrained stone fruit character. This wine explodes on your taste buds and remains there with a never-ending resonance. One of the true pinnacles of German Riesling.
One of Germany’s oldest and most prestigious wineries, Weingut von Winning was founded in 1849 and revived as a family enterprise in 2007 by the late Achim Niederberger, bringing in the extremely talented Stephan Attman as winemaker and assisted by Andreas Huetwohl.
Practicing organic and with enviable holdings of Grosses Gewächs vineyards across the villages of Ruppertsberg, Deidesheim, and Forst. Von Winning produces the most internationally renowned dry wines in Germany.
The Von Winning philosophy has historically relied on respectful cooperation with nature, with no use of herbicides or synthetical fertilisers in the vineyard, no fining and no use of pumping or filtration. Going against the more common (and less expensive) use of stainless steel fermentation, all of Von Winning’s Rieslings are fermented in oak barrels of different sizes, which contributes to their structure and complexity
Attmann describes his winemaking as “not doing the wrong thing at the wrong time.” The estate’s premium wines are treated with a minimalist approach and with the highest respect in the cellar. Gentle clarification, a natural and spontaneous fermentation and the abandonment of fining agents create wines with a distinctive indigenous and very elegant style. Pumping the juice or wine is never necessary in the gravity flow winery, allowing for minimal, and gentle vinification.