VetterSylvaner Steinterrassen “Sandstein” 2020 (750ml)

The “Steinterrassen” wines are something like Vetter’s “1er Crus” – they are sourced from older vines from within the stone terraces. Vetter has two Sylvaners at this level, each one corresponding to a unique soil type: “Sandstein” or sandstone and “Muschelkalk” or limestone.

Normally the “Sandstein” is the more exuberant wine, but in 2020 the wine is deep with citrus and fruit, yet very restrained. There are ultra-fine shavings of citrus fruit and citrus oils – white grapefruit, mandarin orange. Honestly it’s incredible the ravishing simplicity of this nose – just crystalline fruit shavings, bright slivers of citrus that almost extend into the herbal, leaning into menthol, lemon thyme and mint. While the wine is absurdly delicate (bone dry and only 9.5%) it is incisive and focused and linear. Sylvaner at its best.

Vetter’s technique is worth noting, as it’s unique. The grapes are whole-cluster pressed without any maceration or crushing and put directly into old/neutral barrels. The wine is topped up while in barrel, but not sulfured. The wines are normally racked only once and then bottled unfined and unfiltered with lower SO2.

None other than the New York Times’ Eric Asimov wrote about one of Stefan Vetter’s Sylvaners as a “most memorable bottle of 2018.” Find the article here: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/07/dining/drinks/eric-asimov-favorite-wines.html