2021 Weingut Wagner-Stempel, Riesling Feinherb, Rheinhessen, Germany.
The bright golden hued 2021 Riesling Feinherb from Wagner-Stempel is only a touch off dry and is drinking fabulously well at the moment with a stony clean personality and lots of fresh acidity, showing classic lime, apple, peach and kiwi fruits, along with a steely mineral core, almond, a touch of rosewater and herbal tea notes. The subtle residual sugar here adds more of an extra textural lelement rather than overt sweetness in the wine. Wagner Stempel has some very intriguing high elevation vineyards, with Heerkretz or Höllberg, which are visible from afar, offering up very distinctive terroir influences. These steep areas, which are some 250 million years ago, are set on ancient magmatic rock that have formed the mountains here like, as Wagner Stempel’s importer The German Wine Collection notes, balconies of an antique amphitheater, which see great exposures and provide complex flavors. The terroir here is extremely stony/sandy, with gravel and clay soils, including a high level of shell calcium, and a sub- soil of porphyry rock that is volcanic in origin, adding to the mineral and spicy tones to the wines. The Wagner family has owned the winery since 1845, but the vineyards were part of a mixed farm and until recently under Daniel, they were producing just those dreaded bulk-wines. While doing some fabulous Riesling, Wagner calls himself a “grape variety hoarder”, loving to play around with Silvaner, Pinot Blanc, as seen here, Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc to name a few, all of which are well worth searching out. As of now, the Wagner’s have a mix of 50% Riesling, 20% Pinot Blanc, 14% Pinot Noir and St. Laurent (reds), 12% Silvaner and about 4% Scheurebe. All of vines here are certified organic and the estate has been a full VDP member since 2004, making 99% dry wines.
The rise of Weingut Wagner Stempel and winemaker Daniel Wagner, as noted here in prior reviews, has been steady and with precision, these wines are truly a study in quality and terroir, highlighting also the elevation in status of the Rheinhessen beyond a few cult heroes such as Wittmann and Keller and there are some outstanding under the radar producers doing great stuff, not just with Riesling, but with a wide range of grapes. The Rheinhessen is the biggest wine-region in Germany and a vast area with a plethora of soil types, climates and grape varieties, which Wagner is experimenting with to great effect, though the Rieslings here are pretty tasty. So, there’s a lot of excitement here, though the Rheinhessen is the biggest wine-region in Germany, it has array of soil types, climates and grape varieties with some fabulous unique terroirs. Not that long ago the region was maybe best known for the production of Liebfraumilch, mass produced low quality off-dry wines, like Blue Nun and other forgettable labels. The historic and famous vineyards around the villages Westhofen, Flörsheim-Dalsheim or Siefersheim have now become coveted sites, producing some of Germany’s most sought after and expressive wines and the region’s pioneers have created a dynamic must visit region with many top notch and affordable wines being made here, like these by Daniel Wagner at Wagner Stempel. The Wagner family has owned the winery since 1845, but the vineyards were part of a mixed farm and until recently under Daniel, they were producing just those dreaded bulk-wines. This wine saw a combination of stainless steel and large, well used, German oak, making it transparent, but soulful in style. Again most of what you’ll see from Wgner-Stempel are their dry wines, but this slightly off dry Feinherb Riesling or Estate Riesling shouldn’t be overlooked, it is a joy in the glass and wonderfully flexible as a wine, able to go with almost dish.
($24 Est.) 91 Points, grapelive