In Bockenheim, a mid August hailstorm marked the beginning of harvest this year, breaking fruit and knocking entire bunches to the ground. The team at Brand Bros reacted quickly, and within two days had worked their way through 7 ha of grapes. Grapes with broken stems deteriorate fast, their nutrition and water supply cut off, and it becomes a race against time to pick the fruit before it loses quality. With the press running round the clock and the 20 person team pushing through long days, harvest will likely be over in less than a fortnight. Daniel and Jonas, the Brand brothers, took over the family winery in 2014 and have worked hard to restore the farm to the mixed-arable approach of their grandparents’ day, planting fruit trees and grain crops, building soil health, and nurturing biodiversity. The agricultural fields are grazed by sheep from a local farmer, who moves them across the land with the same approach he has always used, but what we refer to today as holistic or mob grazing. From the rye crop, destined for Pankratiushof bread, to the peach, mirabelle, and quince trees, there has been a decent harvest, but the trees are certainly struggling in 40 degree heatwaves and extremely low rainfall. Portugieser, the main grape used for Wildrosé, is also affected by climate change; in Jonas’ words it’s a variety that is ‘definitely losing’ and the 70 year old plot planted by their grandfather will at some point be replaced with a white variety that copes better in the face of increasingly extreme weather.
Wildrosé 2021 is the final vintage of this wine, one of Jonas’ favourites. The Portugieser was intentionally picked on the cusp of ripeness to retain the desired acidity, and macerated together with 10% Riesling grapes for three days. A dark, lively, and juicy rosé, to drink chilled with a cold noodle salad, topped with red chillies and coriander, and a generous pour of soya sauce.