J.B. BeckerSpätburgunder Walkenberg Kabinett Trocken 2014 (750ml)

Hans Josef Becker makes some of the most particular Pinot Noirs in Germany – as if you’d expect anything less. His technique, elaborated a bit above, is curious. The grapes are fermented in pressured tanks, so a semi-carbonic fermentation begins within the grape before they burst open and then, under the pressure, ferment very warmly and very quickly. The process pulls everything – everything – outta the grape so even in light years, even with a Kabinett Trocken, you get a wine with the color of a Amarone Nouveau – if that existed. These are meaty, dark-toned wines with soil and spice.

The Spätlese Trocken (Pinot Noirs) can be full and fruity, something like curious Oregon Pinot Noirs filtered through the soil and soul of Becker; the Auslese Trocken (Pinot Noirs) are truly epic adventures in red wine. Yet, this will not shock you, the Kabinett Trockens are what I gravitate to, though they are not delicate beings… this 2014 is among the most finessed and agile I’ve tasted, yet it remains meaty and herbal – like a slab of beef wrapped in rose petals and savory herbs and thrown on the grill. In the right context, it will likely be just an amazing bottle… in other contexts, it will be more of a curiosity. These are very serious wines, I don’t want to downplay this – but they are their own animal. This is very rare and direct from the cellar so… give it a whirl? Or don’t.