2013 Weingut Rudolf May, Spatburgunder, Langenberg VDP Erste Lage, Franconia Germany.
The Rudi May Pinot Noir, from clone 777 mostly, is from 20 plus year old vines in Franconia, grown on a steep sandstone/marl slope and fermented with natural yeasts and neutral French cask. The results are lovely and the 2013 Langenberg is a stylish medium weight Spatburgunder with wonderful finesse and detail, very different from the Rheingau or Ahr smoky/slate influenced Pinot Noirs, the May gives rich layers with a more elegant profile, this is a great bottle of wine for $25! The nose starts off with a mix of rose petals, tangy red fruits, spice and is lightly earthy, the hue is a deep ruby, true to this darker clone (777) and the palate is full of black cherry, raspberry, plum and strawberry fruits along with mineral notes, saline/oyster shell and cinnamon. The fruit is ripe and sweetly succulent, but it is vibrant and dry with silky sexy texture, again this is joyous stuff and well worth searching out, 2013 was a perfect vintage for Franconia and for Rudi May in particular, especially for his Cru wines like this one and his amazing Silvaner GG, and he told me both 2014 and 2015 were even better, keep an eye out for these impressive wines! Drink this very bright and attractive Pinot Noir over the next 5 to 10 years.
($25 Est.) 93 Points, grapelive