Nahe, Pfalz & Mittelrhein–Of Wheat, Chaff and Thrill

BY ANNE KREBIEHL MW | SEPTEMBER 03, 2024

In 2023, these three disparate regions had two things in common: challenging weather and a turbo-charged harvest. Where 2022 had been marked by extreme dryness, 2023 had plenty of water but not necessarily at the right time. Harvest thus was a race against time – in some places against rot from swollen, split berries that started rotting while moisture allowed the rot to spread; in others, against fast advancing ripeness in grapes that had both temperature and water to ripen. Selective hand harvesting was the absolute key to quality. As I focus my visits to top producers, many of the wines I tasted were simply thrilling, but overall, 2023 is definitely a case of caveat emptor.

A true winner of the 2023 vintage - the Bopparder Hamm with its hot, steep slopes facing the Rhine.

The good 2023 wines have more fill than the 2022s, and if one attribute were to serve, it would have to be juiciness. Acidity is there, but it is rounded and ripe. Alcohol levels are moderate, but the wines brim with flavor. Furthermore, some super-selection meant that some thrilling Spätlesen and Auslesen could be harvested. Quantities were tiny, but the wines are true examples of these Prädikate at estates where these disciplines are thought-through.

It almost goes without saying that those with the most diligent canopy, soil management, agility, means and workforce to react were the winners, as were those with steep, well-draining slopes or stony, poor soils. I dread to think what happened to machine-harvested wines on richer, deeper soils, even those who had prior human passes that cut out the worst rot. Estates that do not have the means to react, to double harvest crews because they do not achieve commensurate prices for their wines were the losers. Timing the 2023 harvest was tricky. Those who machine harvested early to avoid the worst of the rot often had to chaptalize. Those who waited had some dreadful rot and may have had to acidify. Buying machine-harvested wines from 2023 is thus not advised.

Pure Rheinromantik - the famous Loreley rock on a summer evening. Sadly, the famous Rhine nymph made no appearance.

The 2023 Nahe Growing Season

A wet winter morphed into a later spring and budburst in the Nahe, a blessing as water reserves could be replenished and all danger from late spring frosts was over. From then on, things were bumpy. Martin Tesch in Langenlonsheim at the warmer end of the Nahe described: “a wet May, then six weeks of heat, but the vines still lagged in their development until early August; they did not race ahead as they did in 2022. In September, both warmth and wetness arrived, and things sped up.” Frank Schönleber, in the cooler end of the Nahe, reported the unusual change from dry to wet phases with, thankfully, dry weather during flowering but no dry stress. Karsten Peter at Gut Hermannsberg, also at the cooler end, remarked that while 2023 counted among the warm years, it did not have the “brutal” heat of 2022. He recounted “perfect conditions” at flowering, followed by a dry spell in summer and then the all-changing rain. “We had massive rains in August,” he noted, emphasizing that the steep, free-draining, stony sites are a huge advantage in this respect. “If 100 liters fall in four weeks, 50 of these just drain away,” he said. “The [negative] impact is not big, but you have great water availability.”

Canopy management was key to preventing rot. Schönleber noted disease pressure in summer and emphasized how differently Pinot varieties versus Rieslings were affected – with the Pinots taking much more of a hit. Tim Fröhlich insisted his team remain in place throughout the summer to stay on top of the all-important canopy management. At the same time, Cornelius Dönnhoff agreed that “thinning out and canopy management were key. Those who did had a good year,” he said. “I am also happy that I can refer to my father's experience, who had seen many wet Augusts. This was a relatively new experience for me because we rarely had such dramatic weather changes. In June, we thought it would be extremely dry and then wet in August, with summer weather back in September. You had to adapt your thinking, be flexible and sometimes implement 180-degree changes.” Those who did not adapt fared far worse. Dönnhoff said, "You could see vineyards that could not be harvested.”