Dönnhoff is one of Germany's most beloved estates. They first started making wine in small farming village of Oberhäusen an der Nahe over 250 years ago, and the modern estate as we know it today was started by Hermann Dönnhoff in the 1920s. The estate bottles 9 different Erstes Lägen (German for Grand Cru), and each of them is incredibly different and expresses the broad spectrum of terroir that Germay's greatest plots can achieve. Dönnhoff has no winemaking recipe, preferring to adapt to each vintage, but most wines are fermented and matured in a mixture of stainless steel and classic German 1,200 liter stuck and 2,400 liter doppelstuck. They also don't pick sides when it comes to residual sugar, and the wines can range from lusciously sweet to teeth-shattering bone dry, which means there is a wine to love for everyone.
Dellchen is one of Dönnhoff's most treasured bottlings. It is one of their most highly rated Grosses Gewächs, which means it is a dry wine sourced from then Grand Cru vineyard Dellchen. The 2021 vintage received an incredible 100 point score from Stephan Reinhardt of Wine Advocate, which is practically unheard of for a Riesling. The reason this site is so perfect is a mix of volcanic and shale soils on top of an underground aquifer that keeps the vines perfectly hydrated. In case you don't believe us that this is one of the world's greatest dry Rieslings take a look at what Stephen had to say about the 100 point 2021 vintage:
From slate and volcanic soils, the 2021 Dellchen GG opens with a radiant, bright, pure and flinty bouquet with fascinating, refined and subtle, highly elegant yet delicate mirabelle and Amalfi lemon fruit intertwined with slatey notes. The bouquet is heavenly to me (and will be, believe me, for all true Riesling lovers). Mahler's 8th symphony, Fausten's Ascension—it's all here. Subtle intensity, a sense of wonder, perfectly interwoven, natural beauty. This nose already tells everything, and I couldn't go on to the next wine for more than half an hour. On the palate, this is a subtle and delicate, highly filigreed yet also incredibly intense, lush and slatey, long, stimulatingly saline and always uplifted Riesling with perfectly ripe and lush fruit with fine tannins. It is a juicy, ripe wine with crystalline acidity and endless salinity that carries everything. This Dellchen is intense yet never gets heavy, but it becomes even more intense. This is immaculate, highly emotional Riesling. It's not just the most beautiful Dellchen I have ever tasted but certainly also the most fascinating dry Riesling I have ever had. This is pure art. An adorable wine and with so much soul. It can't be expensive enough. When Helmut Dönnhoff was speaking about the feminine, charming and tender character of the cru, it is all here.
94-96 Points from Anne Krebiehl, MW of Vinous: "The 2022 Riesling Norheimer Dellchen Grosses Gewächs unites volcanic and shale soils. The site benefits from underground aquifers. The nose opens with a smoky slate note leading to the lemon- and lime-edged ripe stone fruit. The entire impression is one of yellow-fruited, ripe juiciness. This verges more and more into a yellow spectrum of citrus, perfumed and almost tender. The palate keeps this juicy fruit and dips it into tingling saltiness. Generosity, ripeness, saltiness and textural elements of pear peel and citrus zest unite into a very energetic, driven, almost urgent wine. The finish on the tongue is linear, but the aromas expand and take flight. (Bone-dry)"
