GERMANY
Dr Hermann
Dr. Hermann wine estate is located in the town of Ürzig in the Mosel. The family has been involved in winemaking for several centuries. The wine estate as it is now was created in 1967 when Joh. Jos. Christoffel Erben’s property was sub-divided. Rudy Hermann took over the estate from his father in 1974 and his son Christian joined him as the winemaker in 2001.
The vineyard area totals 7.5 hectares, with vineyards in the following sites: Herrenberg and Treppchen (stairs) in Erden, Würzgarten (the herb garden) in Ürzig, Försterlay in Lösnich, as well as Rosenberg (Kinheim) and Prälat (Monk) in Erden.
The Ürziger Würzgarten and Prälat vineyards are amongst the most highly regarded in the area. Dr Hermann vineyards are all situated on the exceptionally steep slopes along the Mosel River with a unique exposure and micro-climate. The Erdener Treppchen vineyard is made of gray schist, Ürziger Würzgarten has a red sandstone soil while the Prälat, situated between the two, is visibly at the meeting point of these two types of soil and the earth color is a mixture of red and dark gray. This blend of soil is reflected in the wine which shows characteristics from the two other vineyards. The Erdener Prälat covers 1.5 ha of vineyards and ranks as one of the best and most widely known steep vineyards of the Mosel. The vineyard is extremely steep and the vines are up to 100 years old.
Each vineyard has its own specificity.
The Würzgarten brings the spiciness to the wine while Treppchen carries more weight. The Prälat is the balance between the two, it brings the best of both, in addition due to its orientation south the wines have more residual sugar.
The vineyards are managed in a sustainable manner and the work is all done by hand. The work in the vineyards is particularly challenging considering that the slopes are close to a 90° position. Harvest is carried out carefully with several selective pickings and the fruits are hand sorted through several hand selection processes. Gentle pressing is followed by a long fermentation process of six to twelve weeks in stainless steel tanks, with the wines maturing on the lees with no oxygen contact. When conditions allow it higher predicate i.e. dessert wines are also produced. The premium wines include those from the Treppchen, Würzgarten and Prälat sites.
Dr Hermann winery was selected as the Rising Star of the Year 2008 by Wein Plus in Germany.
"Rudi Hermann and son Christian from Dr. Hermann in Erden appeared almost out of the blue last year with a broad selection of fine wines. (...)with the 2006 Erdener Treppchen Herzlay Riesling Spätlese (89) and 2006 Ürziger Würzgarten Urglück Riesling Auslese (91) being my favorites. They also made an excellent trockenbeerenauslese (94) from the Treppchen vineyard."
Joel B.Payne, Steve Tanzer International Wine Cellar 2008
Gault Millau also awarded the 1st two grapes to Dr Hermann in 2008 with the following comments:
". . . In 2006 the vineyards have been extended by one hectare of Ürziger Würzgarten and by one parcel in the famous Erdener Prälat. Vintage 2005 continued the success story of the estate. Vintage 2006 is at the same high level: a superb collection without weaknesses. Here the third grape is not far
any more!".
In 2009 the highly respectable Gault Millau awarded Dr Hermann its 3rd bunch of grape!
“Vintages 2005 and 2006 have been similarly excellent. Vintage 2007 follows on seamlessly. Such a spate of high class Auslese and noble sweet specialties can hardly by found in the region. Some people might find these Rieslings with their baroque richness and distinctive fruitiness a little bit old-fashioned - nevertheless these are undisputedly great wines. Awarding the third bunch of grapes consequently is a mere formality."
To top it all the Eichelmann Deutschlands Weine 2009 awarded the winery a 4th star award which is also a great achievement:
"... In 2005 the Hermanns succeeded in producing enthralling noble sweet wines. Also 2006 showed that Dr. Hermann´s style is not filigree but extremely concentrated, luscious, mineral and enthralling. This also prove the 2007 wines, where already the simplest basic wines show indeed strikingly high standards. The Trockenbeerenausleses are so massively sweet that they are currently hard to assess. A further terrific success for the rising star estate of the last years."
Below are comments from Joel B. Payne published in Steve Tanzer International Wine Cellar January - February 2009 Issue.
"Rudi Hermann and son Christian from Dr. Hermann in Erden (Boutique Wines, Philadelphia, PA) were long relatively unknown, even to me, but that has changed dramatically over the past few vintages. In spite of what some would call their rather old-fashioned style, this is Mosel riesling at its best. With a cornucopia of spätlese and auslese, 2007 played well in their hands. As was the case last year, the 2007 Erdener Treppchen Herzlay Riesling Spätlese Gold Capsule (90) and 2007 Ürziger Würzgarten Urglück Riesling Auslese (91) were my two favorites, but they also made two excellent TBAs (both 94) from the Treppchen and Prälat vineyards. Were space available, this estate would merit full coverage.