2023 Weingut Plandaditsch – Andrea Lauber, Completer, AOC Graubünden, Malans, Switzerland.
Here’s a new one for me, and a lovely dry, medium/full palate white from Switzerland, made from a rare local varietal Completer, with a mouth feel of a rounded Chardonnay, but flavors that are more in line with Erbaluce or Grüner Veltliner, showing a mineral toned array of lemon, peach, fleshy melon, kiwi and apple fruits, along with almond paste, creamy honeycomb, orange blossom and mountain herb. Bottled in a 500ml bottle, I had originally suspected it was a sweeter style, but it is because of the rarity of the grape that led to the smaller bottle size I guess, because the wine is crisply dry, but supple and vinous, almost opulent in textural quality. I learned that Completer or Malanstraube is a white Swiss wine grape variety grown primarily in eastern Switzerland around Graubünden, where this Lauber is from. The Completer vine was once domesticated but has now become mostly feral, though some Swiss winemakers, like Lauber will make limited quantities of wine harvested from these mostly wild vines. Wine produced from Completer tends to be very full bodied and aromatic, as I discovered, and best to be enjoyed with artisan soft cheeses and or poultry dishes. The terroir here in Graubünden is noted for its calcareous soils, warm Foehn winds and cool nights, which perfectly ripen the grapes and allow for richness and depth, as seen here, while retaining acidity for balance. The limestone, weathered schist and gneiss here provide that distinctive mineral infusion and complexity, where the wines are noted for aromatics, structure and a lively character. This golden hued wine, which I blind tasted a few friends on, came away with lots of praise and it impressed a tough audience and definitely won me over with time in the glass.
The Lauber family have been making wine since 1928 and the Andrea Lauber Weingut Plandaditsch is now run by Andrea’s son Marco, who is making an intriguing range of wines, and though noted for their sparkling wines, the reds and this dry Completer white are in demand. They do a blended white, Riesling and Silvaner, plus a collection of single varietal still wines, these include Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and the rare local Freismer and Completer. Again it is the sparkling, Lauber Completer Vin Mousseux Brut, that seems to be the signature wine at this estate in the Malans area. As Jancis Robinson says, there’s a new generation of young Swiss winemakers that are redefining the Alpine wines of Switzerland and I’ve found in the last 15 years a huge selection of exceptional quality offerings, which is a colossal change from when I started in the wine business. I am always curious about new and interesting ancient traditions in the wine world, so discovering Completer was a thrill for me and I just thank winemaker, Mark Bunter, formally of Bunter-Spring Winery, who generously searched out this wine for me while visiting wine country locations in Switzerland recently and brought me this wonderful, barrel fermented and unique bottle. Most of my own experience with top notch Swiss wine, comes from the region of Valais, an extremely steep and high elevation area, with Cave Caloz being my favorite, so it was fun to try this Lauber, in the Graubünden region. Because of exchange rates and the limited nature of the wines, Swiss offerings tend to be on the expensive side, and this is no exception. The Graubünden AOC or Appellation is a wine region of German-speaking winemakers, is home to Pinot Noir, Riesling-Sylvaner, and deep-rooted traditions to create elegant, authentic wines, as done nicely by the Laubers.
($50 Est.) 93 Points, grapelive