People |
Gernot Kollmann
Focus |
Rieslings that feel etched out of the precipitously steep, stony hillsides they were clung to before harvest. Low intervention winemaking means no make up on these beauties, just dry, searingly mineral wines of slate and air.
Country |
Germany
Region |
Mosel
Village |
Enkirch
Climate |
Cool Continental
Vineyards |
13 hectares total. All Grand Cru parcels, all contain very old, pre-phylloxera, un0grafted vines
- Zeppwingert: Gray slate and quartzite
- Batterieberg: “demolition hill” named as such after Carl August Immich, blew up a steep rock face to plant more vines. The center of Zeppwingert. Gray slate and quartzite
- Ellergrub: Blue slate next door to Batterieberg. Dizzyingly steep, I know I’ve climbed it, quite the hike.
- Steffensberg: Red slate. A spicy kick to the wines from the iron and copper rich soil. The same geologic formation starts in the Saar in Niedermenniger and surfaces throughout the Mosel at Urziger Würtzgarten and ends at Rothenpfad on the Marienburg.
- Zollturm: located down river in Traben, super steep and used for both a GG and a sekt.
Grape Varieties |
Riesling
Farming |
Organic
- Practicing for 10 years
- Certified in 2022
Cellar Work |
Natural
- Mix of stainless steel and old casks
- Ambient yeast fermentation
- No additions, except a small about of sulfur at bottling
- Fermented to dryness
About the winery |
In 2008 after a stint at Von Volxem and winemaking at Knebel, Gernot Kollmann and his partners purchased the Batterieberg property. The vines are some of Germany's most genetically diverse, planted long before clonal selections and vine nurseries proliferated.
The castle onsite dates from the 12th century and the Immich family lived there for 500 years until 1989. All of the parcels are in Grand Cru vineyards, super steep, most right along the Mosel river bank. The old Prussian tax maps of the 19th century rated them some of the best in the country.
Gernot has spent 15 years coaxing the very best from these storied vineyards. His dedication to farming and hands of winemaking place him in the echelon of greatest winemakers in the valley.
What do the wines taste like?
Very precisely terroir driven. Super mineral, mostly dry, with quivering acidity and a clarity that makes you stop and think. These are thrilling in their youth but age very well, even 10 years old bottles I’ve had feel like they’ve barely budged.
Pure, unvarnished and powerful.