Himmelreich

This is not meant to sound condescending, but Dirk Brenneisen's wines remind me more and more of Hanspeter Ziereisen's. Like his colleague in Efringen a couple of miles down the road, Brenneisen only minimally filters his wines if at all, he chooses not to deal with piddling issues such as whether his wines are "typical" enough to earn the Qualitätswein label (he bottles everything as Landwein instead), nor is he scared of his wines having a good backbone of acidity. Let's take exhibit A.



Weingut Brenneisen, "Himmelreich" Spätburgunder trocken 2009, Baden
Dark ruby. Dense and concentrated at first, then showing forest fruits (red and black). It's less the aromas and more an overall impression of terrific sappiness and freshness that holds my attention even on the nose. I take a sip. A pronounced, bright vein of acidity washes around my mouth. The tannins have a slightly tart bitterness which amplifies this effect. Extremely fresh and vibrant – almost Italian style in that way. Tremendous concentration for a wine with just 12.5 percent alcohol, with mostly dark berry fruit and chocolately hints. However, the flavours seem secondary amid the freshness and brightness that return on the finish to lend a satisfying, mouthwatering feel.

This was raised for 20 months in Burgundy barrels (barriques), of which only a third were new. Himmelreich refers to the name of the cadastral plot in which the vines were grown – that's another similarity to Ziereisen, who also uses the names of specific plots for his wines.

Even at 16 euro, this is an absolute bargain.