2014 Dönnhoff Tonschiefer Riesling

Dönnhoff

Germany / Nahe / Dönnhoff

The sloping vineyards of the Leistenberg are characterised predominantly by clay slate soils. This dry, blackish-grey slate is perfect for producing superbly elegant wines. Our characterful dry Riesling wines from these soils are therefore named after this ancient rock. Tonschiefer translates as clay slate. The vines are aged between 25 and 30 years old and give yield of about 50hl/ha. 100% selective hand harvest. The must is fermented and the wine matured in stainless steel vats and large oak barrels. It's a full-bodied, mineral Riesling wine with a fruit nose of great finesse and classic acidity.

May, 2016

David Schildknecht

Vinous Media

90 points

This bottling based as usual on the heavily clay- (Ton) rich slate of the Oberhäuser Kieselberg no doubt also reflects that site’s superior ventilation in eclipsing this year’s basic dry generic. Apple and white peach are mingled with hints of orange and grapefruit and tinged with brown spices on the nose. The aforementioned fruits collaborate for a colorful and succulent mid-palate where peach stone piquancy and wet stone add interesting counterpoint. A cooling combination of floral and herbal inner-mouth elements delightfully complements the fruit in a succulently sustained finish.

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About Dönnhoff

Helmut Dönnhoff and son Cornelius make the best wines in the Nahe region and some of the finest anywhere in the world. We can't possibly overstate how much we cherish and revere these wines. They are sheer perfection in their elegantly defined structure and flawless harmony. The epitome of their meticulous winemaking is the Eiswein. Dönnhoff wines have such power and complexity that their signature weightlessness seems nigh on miraculous. One taste and you sense the magic. These wines are on a par with the best of Germany in a very unique way: the sweet wines rival those of Prüm, Loosen and Egon Müller and the dry wines are mentioned in the same breath as luminaries such as Wittmann and Weil. Very few - if any - have this degree of versatility...

About

Cornelius Dönnhoff bears with him the promise and burden of great expectations. Dönnhoff’'s world-renowned Rieslings were first carried into the international limelight by his father, but now it is the son assuming an increasing share of the responsibility for the estate in the small town of Oberhausen on the Nahe (population 400). “No one knows the Nahe, but everyone knows Dönnhoff,” they say in the USA. And with the recent conclusion of his seventh vintage, this young, university-trained viticulturalist has every reason to smile. He won three consecutive Feinschmecker Cups for his dry Riesling collection, and in 2012 the simultaneous distinction of both “Estate of the Year” and “Best White Wine Collection” from the renowned Eichelmann wine guide. In 2014 Stuart Pigott named him Winemaker of the Year in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Cornelius acquired his initial winemaking experience at his parents' estate, followed by an apprenticeship at the Dr. Heger wine estate in Ihringen. University studies in viticultural techniques in Bad Kreuznach came next, followed by time abroad in New Zealand and Australia. In 2007 he assumed the role of cellarmaster at Dönnhoff and currently runs the estate together with his father.