Weil am Rhein lies on the east bank of the Rhine river at the most south-westerly point of Germany. The area is a ‘dreiländereck’, a tripoint where the boundaries of France, Germany and Switzerland meet, and from the swathes of vines you can gaze across the borders. Johannes and Christoph Schneider farm here in the 6th generation with family roots stretching back to 1465. Descending the worn stone steps into the cellar and standing amid huge barrels bound with metal, there’s a sense of stepping outside time and into a quiet world steeped in tradition. Johannes and Christoph took over in 2018, continuing the focus on Pinot varieties. They introduced the Haus GuPi wines the same year with the desire to create unfiltered natural wines that steer firmly away from funky, aiming to make this low intervention approach to wine, and the farming it’s founded upon, more accessible. Since 2020, all of the wines (including those with more classical labels) are made with a low intervention approach and minimal sulphites added. In 2023 they were certified organic and the same year a small flock of ten sheep were introduced to work the soil in the steeper plots. The brothers farm over 70 plots that spread across the Tüllinger Berg, a mountain of forest and orchards harbouring rare birds and an abundance of flora and fauna. The vineyards offer limestone soils with varying layers of clay, shaping wines that tell the story of their origin.
The grapes for Grisant ’22 grow on southwesterly slopes, old vines where picking starts early to create a fresh, juicy Pinot. Although generally a warm year, hail in July meant plenty of sorting in the vineyard during harvest to ensure only the healthiest grapes reached the winery. After 4 days of carbonic maceration, the grapes were pressed while still retaining some sweetness and continued fermentation in the barrel. Aged for 12 months followed by 6 months in stainless steel, this wine has lovely red fruit and whispers of wild strawberries. Drink chilled.