2022 Niedermenniger Herrenberg 'Red Wine' (Pinot Noir)
AP10
Hofgut Falkenstein
Saar, Germany (Mosel)

Pinot Noir has been coming on really strong in Germany in the last 5+ years. In fact a good friend who sells a LOT of it has tagged it as “Red Riesling” and I kind of like that term. Besides it being from Germany’s Riesling terroirs, the wine also does not go through malolactic fermentation. That helps retain the natural acidity of course. More elegant, more transparent, red-fruited, acidity, and a beautiful perfume. What’s not to like for $26? I have had a decent amount of German Pinot Noir and the wines have the body of a good Loire Sancerre red, with more of the aromatics and fruit of Burgundy. 2017 was a warm year so there is a shade more to the depth on this one

Previous tasting notes and scores availble (2021 not yet rated)

2019: Toasty, sweaty and smoked meat notes vie with dried cherry and red currant for aromatic attention on the nose of the 2019 Red Wine Niedermenniger Herrenberg trocken. The palate perpetuates those impressions with an alluringly silky feel allied to just enough juiciness. Rose hip, cherry pit, black tea and black pepper lend complexity to an impressively sustained finish. (For why this 100% Pinot Noir is labeled simply, in English, “Red Wine,” consult my review of the corresponding 2017.) - By David Schildknecht on November 2021

Importer: They are making the best Riesling of Erich and Johannes’ meteoric careers, and I could have easily highlighted their study in perfect high-wire balance, the 2019 Niedermenniger Herrenberg Riesling Spätlese feinherb. But the Pinot Noir is delightful. Ripe, accessible cherry aromas and no tannin or fat. I think it hews closer to true Pinot character than anything I’ve tried from outside the gilded confines of Burgundy, and it’s better than anything I’ve tried for the same price made within them.