Odinstal ‘120 NN’ Riesling 2018

The second-largest wine producing region in Germany is the Pfalz. With a culture of conventionally-made wine and an eye to quantity not quality, Pfalz rieslings almost always have sugar added and come from pesticide soaked vineyards. Not my thing to be sure!
In this land of conventionally-made wine, Odinstal is an courageous outlier! To find a farm that is making a pure reflection of the Pfalz is such an amazing treat! This incredible estate eschews conventional approaches for the biodynamic. At high elevation amongst mountains, the estate Weingut Odinstal is nestled in a valley on the edge of an extinct volcano which makes for some unique soils that help this magical wine stand apart from the others. The winery itself is stunningly beautiful complete with a gorgeous 1800’s esate and surrounding vineyards. 

Incredibly unique soils mean incredibly unique wines; but as we’ve said before and we’ll say again & again, you can only truly represent these soils with a hands-off approach to the winemaking with plenty of attention to the soil health. The terraced vineyards lie on the edge of an extinct volcano. Ancient volcanic activity (we’re talking Paleogene period like 20-60 million years ago!!) is to thank for the soil composition of basalt, sandstone, shell limestone, and keuper (a pre-historic limestone). From the start, Odinstal owner Thomas Hensel has made showcasing this soil top priority. He brought in winemaker (and notable biodynamic practitioner and enologist) Andreas Schumann in 2004 to do justice to the vines growing in this special place. Schumann notes that Riesling is “the variety that most authentically reflects the location.”

All of this to explain in some small way how magical this wine is!! The ‘120 NN’ Riesling 2018 is a blend of multiple plots, this vintage showcasing shell limestone, basalt, and sandstone. Picked slightly earlier, the juice is fermented trocken in stainless steel (trocken is an important word to remember for your German wine buying & means DRY).

White peaches & nectarines jump out of the glass and follow up on the palate. The wine has weight and is quite textural with citrus and hints of tropical spice. Gloriously balanced acidity and skin tannins that make me sooo very happy!! 

Special and so delicious! Come by and explore how magical a truly great Riesling can be!