The 2008/2009 Winter, at last turned out to be a real winter with temperatures falling down to -15°C and in the eastern part of Germany down to -25°C. Some weather "prophets" say it was the long, cold period which made nature seem to explode in March. Everything seemed to budding in much of a hurry and the blossoming of the trees was obviously very early, maybe 2 to 3 weeks earlier than on the average. The year continued to favourably as sunshine and rainfall were concerned and we could foresee already in August that the harvest could take place earlier than normal. One fact could be forecast already at that period: The vintage 2009 could be great but the yield would certainly be smaller due to an unequal flowering period.
Harvesting this year again posed a challenge! In spring we had a long freeze but a few very warm days let the flowering start at a normal time. A sudden cold snap extended the florescence to a period of three weeks which led to a very different stage of development of the single berries on the grape clusters. Furthermore a reduction of the crop yield by mildew ( peronospera ) was predictable.
A relatively cold and humid summer caused downey mildew in an unusual early stage. Luckily at the end of August a period of warm and dry weather commenced and we had a ripeness explosion. This was too good to be true and so, punctually at the beginning of the Riesling harvest on 5th October a period of unsettled weather began.
We had just picked the Burgundy varieties like Spätburgunder (pinot noir), Weissburgunder (pinot blanc), Grauburgunder (pinot gris) and Chardonnay at an optimum degree of ripeness when rain set in. In combination with the warmth the grapes starting rotting and so we had to hurry up. In some vineyards we already had made a pre-selection and the grape harvester came into action. Luckily the new generation of those machines is much better than it used to be and doesn't strain the grapes any more.
At the end of October an improvement in the weather with cold nights, we even had frost, allowed us to harvest a Beerenauslese. This was the culmination of the top vintage 2009.
All the grapes had a very high sugar content, between 95° to 100° degree Oechsle (up to 240 Briggs). This means all of them are of Spätlese or Auslese quality. Very clear and fruity wines, rich in extract, full bodied and well balanced. The only cloud in the sky: the decrease in quantity by 50 % concerning the burgundy varieties and by about 30 % regarding the Riesling yield.
This year also meant a great challenge in yet another aspect. We completely changed over to ecological cultivation and we even sprayed less then normal. The result did not take us by pleasant surprise, it also reassured us that we follow the right road. We discovered that the musts would ferment exemplarily, which is of particular importance to us as domestically we market 90 % dry wines.
The white Burgundy varietals will be bottled in February/ March, the every day Riesling wines will be filled in early spring and the highest qualities in early summer. The Pinot Noir wines will mature for 12 to 24 months in traditional wooden casks or barriques, depending on their potential.
a similar experience as Hans Lang with the difference that our flowering period was not interrupted and yielded regular fruit. The Mosel area enjoyed some outstanding summer days with temperatures up to 35° C. Rain fell at the right time and the grapes developed in an unbelievable speed during July and August.
However, we still have to call this vintage an "envious" vintage when some producers got a full harvest whilst other only 50%. In some areas such as Reil, Bernkastel, Leiwen etc. unforeseen mildew hit vast areas and dimmished the crop by between 30 to 50%. Our area around Traben-Trarbach, Enkirch and Piesport was more fortunate and we could pick some super and healthy grapes with Oechsle degrees between 90 to 105° and an acidity between 8 to 9 grams per litre during a dry period of 3 weeks in October. This acidity will be mature and soft and will give the wines the attractive freshness, elegance and balance for which MOSEL wines are reknowned. This superb acidity also garantees a long shelf life. Try our DRY Rieslings, they are super!
...on great qualities with the red grapes but a with a yield in Pinot Noir which is down to 5.000 hectoliters per hektar. The Pinot Noir produced qualities of above 12.5% by nature, so did the white varietals such as Kerner and Pinot Blanc but with only a 5500 hectoliter yield.
The Riesling grapes were super and reached Oechsle degrees between 90° and 112° which will produce outstanding, mature Riesling wines. Unfortuantely rain started by November 1 and prevented us from Producing BAs and TBAs.
The harvest 2009 could be called "excellent". The final yield was, however, 10% less than last year. After a cold winter the flowering period profited from favourable weather. July was pretty rainy and we consequently received the necssary water supply for the ripening period in August. Our estate was chosen for the official start of the harvest and the press, radio and television visited us. We had a wonderful dry period to pick all different grape varietals at their peak of development. We already bottled some 2009 wines such as ORTEGA Spätlese, SOLARIS Auslese in November and we shall bottle BAs of Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Blanc soon.
The Government granted us the most honorable SILVER AWARD in recognation of the achieved qualities and technical achievement. This is the 2nd best prize any estate could win in German wine areas.
The "explosion" of nature around Eastern led to an early budding but weather was rather cool during the flowering period which may have been the reason for a lower yield. We delayed the beginning of the harvest until October 22 and finished by November 15 with great Oechsle results. Except for the Huxel grape varietal which reached 142° Oechsle we shall market most of our wines, whether Riesling, Pinot Blanc, Scheurebe or Gewürztraminer wines with 90° - 95° Oechsle - non chaptalized - as QbA and Kabinett which are the qualities the market expects. The consumer will certainly profit from this decision.
Prices have have kept stable for a long time but I foresee some modest increases simply because of the smaller yields at present, the 2007 and 2008 vintages remain the best bet at very reasonal prices.