Christoph Wolber and Alexander Götze are the skillful winemakers behind Wasenhaus, brought together by a love of Pinot and a desire to produce elegant, terroir-driven wines. During their oenology studies in Beaune they worked at some of Burgundy’s top biodynamic wineries and, after becoming friends and roommates, they took their wealth of knowledge back to their motherland and the rich soils of Baden. The winery is in Christoph’s hometown, Staufen, where the easterly winds from the Black Forest cool the grapes at night, giving them a high natural acidity. It is a peaceful setting, with small winding streets and courgettes blossoming in the driveway. The old vine parcels — some reaching 100 years — are located in and around Staufen: some planted as early as 1965 at Ehrenstettener Ölberg and Ehrenkirchener Kirchberg on limestone, with one plot at the nearby Kaiserstuhl appellation, a bit further from Staufen and planted on volcanic soil. The pair tend to 4 hectares of their own, supplemented by roughly 3 hectares of purchased grapes which they rely on especially in years of a difficult harvest. From their first vintage in 2016 they have focussed on quality over quantity and embraced manual labour in the vineyards (a necessity on the steep slopes in Ölberg) and low intervention in the cellar.
For this light-bodied Gutedel, two thirds of the grapes were direct pressed and fermented in wooden barrels, with the remainder destemmed and mash fermented for 12 days before pressing and fermenting dry in wooden barrels. After more than 9 months on full lees in the barrel, the wine was drawn off and prepared for bottling. A young wine with surprising structure given its low alcohol content and as refreshing as cool springwater on a hot summer’s day.