Best German Wines - Eichelmann Wine Guide 2012, Germany

Picture: Christian G.E. Schiller with Helmuth Doennhoff, Weingut Doennhoff

The 2012 Eichelmann wine guide was presented in November 20011 for the 12th time. The 2012 Eichelmann is almost 1000 pages thick; almost 13.000 wines from about 1.300 winemakers were tasted and reviewed.

Here is a posting for a previous year on schiller-wine: Wine ratings: German wine --- Eichelmann 2010

Best White Wine Collection of the Year: Weingut Hermann Dönnhoff, Oberhausen in the Nahe valley. Eichelmann: „Helmut Dönnhoff is one of the few German winemakers with international recognition. He makes fascinating Rieslings, both dry and sweet-style”.

Best Red Wine Collection of the Year: Weingut Meyer-Näkel, Dernau in the Ahr valley. He is one of the fathers of the German red wine revolution .

Picture: Friedrich Becker from Weingut Becker in the Pfalz (on the right), Werner Naekel from Weingut Meyer-Naekel in the Ahr (in the middle) and Ludwig Kreuzberg from Weingut H.J. Kreuzberg in the Ahr (on the left)

Best Collection of Noble-Sweet Wine of the Year: Weingut Markus Molitor, Bernkastel-Wehlen in the Mosel valley. “Nobody else has produced so many fascinating noble-sweet wines in 2010” said Eichelmann.

Discovery of the Year: Sebastian Schäfer, Weingut Joh. Bapt. Schäfer, Burg Layen in the Nahe valley.

Wine Classics: In addition to the 4 wineries of the year, Eichelmann chose the Idig Grosses Gewaechs , Weingut Christmann, Neustadt-Gimmeldingen as Wine Classic – a wine that consistently year after year shows a clear profile and which can be regarded as prototype of the grape variety and the region.

Picture: Steffen Christmann with Stuart Pigott

Best Wines of 2001 (Retasting after 10 Years) in the Categories Riesling, Spaetburgunder and Other Red Wines:

(a) Best 2001 Riesling: Werner and Frank Schönleber for their 2001 Monzinger Halenberg Riesling Auslese trocken.

(b) Best Other 2001 Red: Lemberger trocken, Barrique, Hans Haidle, Kernen-Stetten in Württemberg.

(c) Best 2001 Spätburgunder:Spätburgunder Spätlese trocken Bürgstadter Centgrafenberg, Weingut Stich.

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