Gut Hermannsberg, Hermannsberg GG, Nahe 2017 - 75cl
Grosses Gewachs is Germany's term for a dry wine from a single grand-cru site, and the Hermannsberg is about as good a name to attach it to as the Nahe offers. The vineyard sits right in front of the estate house at Gut Hermannsberg and belongs to the estate alone, a true monopole, which means every bottle carries one specific slope and no committee compromise.
This is dry Riesling grown on slate, with melaphyr, a volcanic rock, worked into the soil more than a century ago during mining. The 2017 vintage was small but concentrated, and it shows in the glass. The nose leads with orange zest and quince, a little yeasty depth, then fennel, mint and pear underneath. On the palate it is dry and juicy at once: ripe stone fruit and lime, wild herbs, and a salinity that runs the length of the wine.
What holds it together is the acidity, racy and fully woven in rather than sharp, carrying a long, faintly lemony, stony finish. This is a Riesling built on structure and mineral drive more than upfront fruit, the sort that rewards a decent glass and a bit of patience. It is drinking well now, and with the balance of the 2017 it will keep developing for a decade or more, trading primary fruit for honey, petrol and toast as it ages.
How to Serve
Serve at 10-12°C, not fridge-cold, in a white wine glass with some height to lift the aromatics. A young GG like this benefits from air; decant it or give it half an hour open before pouring.
Where to Drink It
Noble Rot in Soho, always strong on serious German Riesling. The River Cafe in Hammersmith, whose ingredient-led Italian cooking loves this kind of acidity. J Sheekey off St Martin's Lane for a plate of shellfish.
Food Pairings
I'd pour it with a Thai fish curry, the salinity and acid cut clean through the coconut and chilli. It is also excellent with roast pork and crackling, smoked trout, or a spread of dim sum.
