Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours took place from August 28 – Friday, September 06, 2024. We spent 10 days visiting top wine estates in five wine regions, tasting fabulous Rieslings and Pinot Noir (aka Spätburgunder), meeting world-renowned wine makers, travelling through the world’smost beautiful wine regions, cruising on the romantic Rhein river, looking at dizzying steep vineyards along the Rhein and Mosel rivers, and delving deep into German history and culture: Rheinhessen • Rheingau • Mittelrhein • Mosel • Nahe
Tasting at Weingut Thörle in Saulheim, Rheinhessen
Following Weingut Braunewell, we visited Weingut Thörle. This was a tasting only event. We were received by Uta, Christoph and Johannes Thörle.
l’ll Be Brief (Lyle Fass)
Thorle is without doubt one of the top 2-3 producers of Pinot Noir in Germany.
Some will argue they are the best.
Years ago, when the wines were not close to being as good as they are today, they stood toe to toe in a blind tasting with very good Burgundy.
This wine should cost over $100.
But because Burgundy lovers have not caught on yet, it's $29.99. You
are buying very good 1er Burgundy quality wine for under $30. It should
be illegal to drink this on anything other than a special occasion.
Weingut Thoerle in Saulheim, Rheinhessen
Weingut
Thoerle is a German elite producer. It belongs to the group of German
elite producers like Molitor, Dreissigacker, Selbach-Oster, Ziereisen,
to name a few, that produce at the worldclass level, but are not member
of the VDP, the association of about 200 German elite producers.
In a recent James Suckling/ Stuart Pigott list of the Top 100 Wines of Germany (2022), Weingut Thoerle is #4 with their Weingut Thoerle 2021 Hölle Riesling Trocken.
See: Top 100 Wines of Germany 2022 by James Suckling/ Stuart Pigott
Stuart Pigott: A much less well known example of how Rheinhessen became the dream factory of dry German wines takes position No. 4, the flamboyant and expressive Thörle Riesling Rheinhessen Hölle Trocken 2021. In recent years, the dry rieslings from brothers Johannes and Christoph Thorle stood in the shadows of their amazing spatburgunder reds, but 2021 gave their dry rieslings a stunning brilliance.
Weingut Thoerle is available in the USA through David Bowler Wines (Portfolio Manager: Evan Spingarn). Chamber Cellars in New York just sent out a special offer including a Spätburgunder of Weingut Thoerle.
The ancestors of the two winemaker brothers Christoph and Johannes Thörle were already producing wine in the 16th century. Christoph and Johannes took over management of the winery with 50 acres of vineyards in 2006 and have since become - similar to the Braunewell brothers- flagship producers in Rheinhessen.
A blind Pinot Noir “Germany vs. Rest of the World” tasting in London in October 2011 ranked the 2008 Winzerhof Thörle Spätburgunder (Pinot Noir) Hölle as #3 overall and #1 of the German Pinot Noirs.
Their US importer Bowlerwines describes the estate in a perfect way: “....the focus has been almost exclusively on the classic grape varieties Riesling, Pinot Noir, white Burgundy varieties and Silvaner. In the first few years the company was completely transformed. By intensifying manual work in the vineyards, rigorously reducing yields and harvesting by hand, the quality of the grapes has increased
enormously. The wines polarize and fascinate, they offend, show character and origin. Thörle wines are deliberately independent, unvarnished and made with heart.”
In 2019 Christoph and Johannes started the conversion to organic farming and after a transition period of three years, they are now certified organic.
The Thorle Pinot Noir Leap (Lyle Fass)
We picked up Thorle because of their Pinot Noirs which were very, very good when we started in 13 with them but then they took a mini leap in 2015 which I think had more to do with the quality of 15 rather than his winemaking skills. Not that the Thorle brothers didn’t improve from 14 to 15 but 15 is an all time great German Pinot vintage that lifted all boats, small or big. But then in 2018 Thorle went from very very good German Pinot Noir producer (top 10) to arguably the best Pinot Noir producer in Germany along with Ziereisen. That’s the biggest leap. But then they made their epic 2019s which were even better than the 18s. The 18s and the 19s of Thorle are genius epic wines and maybe the two greatest back to back vintages of German Pinot Noir Fass Selections has worked with. But with 20 they continued the great work of 19 and added elite finesse but in 21 they have outdone themselves.
Stuart Pigott
"...The Thoerle brothers – Johannes and Christoph in Saulheim – also make great dry rieslings, but it was their pinot noirs (marketed under the German synonym spatburgunder) from the 2022 vintage that wowed Stuart the most.
This began with an astonishing entry-level wine, the Thörle Spätburgunder Rheinhessen 2022, which is brimming with black cherry and violet aromas, plus delicate savory and spicy nuances of the kind we associate with single-vineyard wines. And Stuart has no doubt that the Thörle Spätburgunder Rheinhessen Hölle 2022 is one of the greatest red wines ever made in this region. It has astonishing Amarena cherry, raw meat and peppery complexity, and is also very concentrated and compact with velvety tannins and a salty freshness.
Hot on its heels is the Thörle Spätburgunder Rheinhessen Probstey 2023, which Stuart described as like entering a dark forest with all the berry, wildflower and forest floor aromas. The huge structure of this wine is so beautifully integrated it carries you away on the magic carpet of its silky finish...."
Classic Rheinhessen Rieslings and California’s Cult-Level Collectibles: Weekly Tasting Report (Aug 21-27)
Arriving at Weingut Thoerle
Tasting with Uta, Christoph and Johannes Thoerle
Visiting Christoph Thoerle and Johannes Thoerle of Weingut Thoerle in Rheinhessen/ Germany (2023)
Tim Atkin's London Pinot Noir Tasting “Germany Versus Rest of World”in 2011
Sponsored by the German Wine Institute (Deutsches Wein Institut), Tim
Atkin organized a Pinot Noir “Germany Versus Rest of World” Tasting in
London in October 2011, at which the German wines performed extremely
well: 7 of the top 13 wines of the 40 Pinot Noirs from around the world
were German Spaetburgunder wines.
The
best ranked German Pinot Noir was the 2008 Winzerhof Thörle
Spätburgunder Hölle; it was ranked #3 overall and #1 of the German Pinot
Noirs.
I have
written about the tasting: The
Tim Atkin Pinot Noir Taste-Off of October 2011: Germany Versus the Rest
of the World - German Red Wines Show Strong Performance.
Surprising the World with their Pinot Noir: Johannes and Christoph Thoerle, Winzerhof Thoerle, Rheinhessen, Germany
Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours: Already Released and Forthcoming Postings
Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Weingut Braunewell in Essenheim, Rheinhessen, with Stefan Braunewell - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting at Weingut Thörle in Saulheim, Rheinhessen, with Christoph Thörle, Johannes Thörle and Uta Thörle - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Grauburgunder Wine-pairing Dinner at Restaurant Lumen in Wiesbaden - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting at Weingut Eva Fricke in Eltville, Rheingau, with Eva Fricke - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Cellar
Tour and Tasting at Wein- und Sektgut Barth (VDP) in Hattenheim,
Rheingau, with Mark Barth and Alexia Putze - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe
2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch at the Klosterschänke at Eberbach Abbey (founded by Cistercian monks
at about the same time as the famous Château de Clos de Vougeot in
Burgundy) - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Guided Tour of Eberbach Abbey(founded by Cistercian monks
at about the same time as the famous Château de Clos de Vougeot in
Burgundy) - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard
Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Weingut Kloster Eberbach (VDP) in
Eltville, Rheingau, with Head-winemaker Katrin Puff - Germany
Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Wine-pairing
Dinner with Wines of Weingut Balthasar Ress at Restaurant
Kronenschlösschen, with Weingut Balthasar Ress Senior Boss Stefan Ress,
Kronenschlösschen Head-sommelier Florian Richter (Best German Sommelier
2024 - Sommelier Union), Chef Roland Gorgosilich and Owner Johanna
Ullrich - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Cellar
Tour and Tasting at Weingut Georg Breuer in Rüdesheim, Rheingau, with
Theresa Breuer - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Cellar
Tour and Tasting at Weingut Schloss Johannisberg (VDP), with Dieter
Salomon - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch and Impromptu Tasting of Weingut Familie Allendorf Wines with Ulrich Allendorf and Max J. Schönleber at Restaurant Allendorf am Rhein - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting
at Weingut Peter Jakob Kühn (VDP) in Oestrich-Winkel, Rheingau, with
Peter Bernhard Kühn - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting at Weingut August Kesseler (VDP) in Assmannshausen,
Rheingau, with August Kesseler - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by
ombiasy WineTours
Lunch, Tasting and Vineyard Tour at Weingut
Lanius Knab (VDP) in Oberwesel, Mittelrhein, with Jörg Lanius - Germany
Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Cruise on the Rhein,
from Boppard to Koblenz, passing the famous Loreley Rock - Germany
Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tour of the Fortress Ehrenbreitstein - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch and Impromptu Wine Tasting of the Wines of Weingut Madame Flöck, with Weingut Madame Flöck Owner/ Winemaker Robert Wade, Verbene Bistro Chef Tim Johnston, Restaurant Verbene Michelin starred Chef/ Owner David Weigang and Partner Verena Schimmel - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting at the 2024 Weinfest in Winningen - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tour
of Eltz Castle, a True Fairy-tale Medieval Castle in the Hills above
the Mosel, Built more than 850 Years ago by the Eltz Family - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch
at Restaurant Heim in Hotel Reiler Hof (Michelin Bib Gourmand) in Reil -
Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Cellar Tour
and Tasting at Weingut Melsheimer in Reil, Middle Mosel, with Thorsten
Melsheimer - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting
at Weingut Clemens Busch (VDP) in Pünderich, Middle Mosel, with Oda
Berthold - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Weingut
Dr. Thanisch, Erben Müller-Burggraef Wines and Overnight Stay at the
Brand-new, High-end Deinhard’s Hotel in Bernkastel-Kues - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting
Weingut Dr.Loosen (VDP) in Bernkastel-Kues, Middle Mosel, with Anne
Juchem - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting
at Weingut Max Ferdinand Richter in Mülheim, Middle Mosel, with Dirk
Richter - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting
at Weingut Hermann Ludes in Thörnich, Middle Mosel, with Julian Ludes -
Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting at Weingut Günther Steinmetz in Brauneberg, Middle Mosel, with Sammy Steinmetz - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting
at Weingut Matthias Hild in Wincheringen, Upper Mosel, with Matthias
and Jonas Hild - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch with Wines from Luxemburg at Koeppchen Bistro-Brasserie in Wormeldange-
Haut in Luxembourg - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Vineyard
Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Weingut Van Volxem (VDP) in Wiltingen,
Saar, with Lukas Büchner - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy
WineTours
Asian Themed Wine-pairing Dinner at Dian's in
Bernkastel-Kues, led by Janet Cam and Annette Schiller - Germany
Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
29-5
Tasting at Weingut H. Dönnhoff (VDP), Oberhausen, Nahe, with Anne Dönnhoff - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch at Hermannshöhle Restaurant Weck in Niederhausen - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy WineTours
Tasting
at Weingut Korrell Johanneshof in Bad Kreuznach, Nahe, with Sonja
Reinbold and Martin Korell - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe 2024 by ombiasy
WineTours
Wine-pairing Dinner at Restaurant Kruger-Rumpf,
Weingut Kruger-Rumpf (VDP), with Stefan Rumpf - Germany Rhein-Mosel-Nahe
2024 by ombiasy WineTours
