As pharmacist and inventor, Friedrich Koch bought his first vineyard more for his own projects in 1833. When his son Carl Koch, mayor of Oppenheim, took over, he purchased more plots and professionally started making wine. Since then, the winery has grown and undergone many ups and downs but always stayed in the same family. The very young Paul Berges inherited the winery a decade ago and hired the well-known winemaker Heiner Maleton, who transitioned the 12 hectares to organic and changed many things in the cellar. Augustin Novoa has now taken over the winemaking since 2018 and is changing things once again. Originally from Argentina, where he was influenced by the bio-dynamic wine style at Alpamanta, he has traveled the world and made wine in many regions like the US, Italy, and New Zealand.
Riesling again, but different and unique. Grown on marl and limestone soil, the vines are close to 50 years old and are located in the Oppenheimer Kreuz, a designated GG location, which is a German premier cru label. After they picked the grapes in September, they macerated for three days and were pressed afterward. With its native yeast, it fermented for five months in oak barrels before it was bottled without any filtration or sulfites. The bottles spent another 5 years in their cellar and are now in a perfect state. Once you open it, there is a little bit of fizz left as it continued to ferment in the bottle. In the nose, it will greet you with a ripe apple and some subtle tropical aromas. It continues with beautiful ripe flavors once you drink it but complements them with a perfect saltiness and a little bitter kick in the end. Augustin recommends pasta with black truffles and pecorino to transform the fruity side of the wine.