Germany

Jochen Clemens (Region: Mosel):  My nickname for Jochen Clemens is "the Alchemist" from the magic he creates out of his small batch fermenters that produce some of the most fully flavored Mosel wines that I have ever tasted.  With vineyards in the prime central Mosel area between Bernkastel and Piesport, Jochen's vineyards also have their own very attractive characteristics as well.

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Corvers Kauter (Region: Rheingau): Corvers Kauter produces possibly the most "precise" wines that I have ever tasted.  Dr. Corvers apparently understands the complete potential of every parcel and then creates amazing expressiveness in all of his wines.  This is also quite a find as Dr. Corvers was originally was very polite in letting me know that "he has no wine" as each year's production is largely allocated to private clients.  We then started talking about wine, however, and he decided to open some bottles.  What I tasted was so impressive that I am now importing 12 of his wines, including multiple Pinot Noirs that are the equivalent of the most prestigious Grand Cru sites in Burgundy.

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Ernst Bretz (Region: Rheinhessen):  In each country from where I import wines I try to find a "local winery" that the local population looks to as their ongoing source of high quality every day drinking wines.  In Germany I found a great local winery in the middle of the Rheinhessen that has been in the village of Bechtolsheim for over 300 years.  That is Weingut Ernst Bretz from where I have selected six fun and refreshing wines - including two sparkling wines.

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Georg Mosbacher (Region: Pfalz): The Mosbacher estate in Forst producers deeply flavored and precisely made Rieslings, Weissburgunders, and Pinot Noirs that fully express the powerful wines that can be made in the Pfalz wine region.  My initial selection from this producer is of three Rieslings, a Weissburgunder, and a "Special Cuvee" Pinot Noir that show the very talented wine making skills of the husband and wife winemaking team.

Philipp Kuhn (Region: Pfalz): I normally only select one producer from each region as I prefer to not have "competition" in my portfolio but I also selected Philipp Kuhn in Pfalz due to the quality of the wines and to show how expressive Riesling can be in different terroirs.  Although only 20 miles from my other Pfalz producer the wines have completely different flavor profiles but are still also very food friendly.

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St. Antony (Region: Rheinhessen): The St. Antony vineyards are in the prestigious "Roter Hang" section of the Rheinhessen that is know for the deeply flavored and mineral rich wines from the iron enriched (the Roter, or Red part of the name) clay soils that have made other producers such as Keller being world famous.  Our initial selection is of three of their wines and I will look to add more once I've created more awareness about their wonderful wines.

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Weingut Ziereisen (Region: Baden): The Ziereisen family winery is a prime example of many things that I look for at all of my suppliers.  First of all, they are farmers first...which was immediately seen in their "wine shop" where far more space was allocated to displaying their extensive array of great looking produce than to displaying their wines.  Secondly, the family respects the heritage of their land which also includes an extended family spanning four generations currently being involved in their operations.  Thirdly, there is an amazing focus on producing the best wines possible as Hanspeter Ziereisen combines his encyclopedic knowledge of his vineyards with his extremely creative and meticulous winemaking skills to make wonderfully expressive Pinot Noirs, Weissburgunders, and Grauburgunders.  It is a fun place to visit too while tasting wine in the open courtyard of their family home.  But Hanspeter then also showed his focus and  commitment to what is most important as after graciously and patiently letting me taste a lot of his wines, he then said "well, it is time for me to go back to work" and he got up, walked over to a tractor, and headed back to his very hilly vineyards.

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