Two Bottles Winzerhof Stahl
We are drinking two wines from the Winzerhof Stahl in Franken: a Chenin Blanc Steinmauer and a Scheurebe from the Marsberg, both 2022.
Quite a lot has happened at Winzerhof Stahl since we had the wines here last time. In the meantime, a star now shines over Christian Stahl’s culinary art, who, as I saw scroll by somewhere in the feed recently, cooks the food to suit the wine and not the other way round. That kind of makes sense as a winemaker. A visit to Auernhofen is still on the internal to-do list anyway. Not least because you can then stop by Landbau Krämer as well. And there’s been movement in winegrowing too. Since 2023 the estate has had a respectable 40 hectares under its wing, a huge increase compared with the one and a half hectares on which Christian Stahl started. And the wine lines Federstahl, Damaszenerstahl and Edelstahl have given way on the labels to grape varieties and vineyards. And the varietal portfolio is growing as well. I place Chenin Blanc on the Loire or in South Africa. Certainly not in Franken. This one grows on limestone soils on the Main and is matured in Tonneaux. The Scheurebe comes from the Marsberg, from 40-year-old vines, is hand-harvested, spontaneously fermented and then likewise matured in Tonneaux.
For once, curiosity pays off. The bottles came straight from the case onto the table. Luckily, because under the Chenin’s capsule there was more biotope than cork. It was completely wet all around and evidently not one of the tight-sealing kind of corks. Also a bit odd that, unlike the other, it isn’t branded. Maybe an emergency batch, who knows. Too much oxygen in the bottle is known to push the contents quickly toward dark yellow and a Sherry flavor. Fortunately this bottle is unremarkable in terms of color, and both a test sip and the smell give the all-clear. So the escaping liquid probably kept the oxygen out. Of course I can’t entirely rule out that it didn’t still have an influence on the contents.
The wine smells relatively restrained. At least at the start. Then a touch of too-soft exotic fruit joins in, rather dark, creamy and also a bit waxy. Maybe I’m only imagining the wax because you think Chenin should have that. What I will also never smell over the course of the two days is anything that would suggest ruined tree bark. That’s good. Because I like how the wine tastes a lot, although I like how it feels even more than how it tastes. The acidity is enormously juicy, fruity, with lots of texture behind it, and gets even a little better with swirling. That too is a sign that not much oxygen has so far found its way past the weeping closure. With the wine on the tongue, the aroma also becomes more expressive, not different, but more. Yellow, creamy, a bit of butter, a sprig of rosemary. It’s a good thing it didn’t disappear lying in some box. It probably wouldn’t have survived that. And that would have been a pity, because this is really good.
Day two is unchanged. A bit more structure, a touch more fruit perhaps. In general I like the structure very much, and that happens relatively often with Chenin for me. The mix of citrus fruit and the sturdy, mineral texture. Mega good. And if you don’t happen to catch a bottle like this one, it should stay that way for many years to come. You often read with such grape varieties whether you really need that. Chenin Blanc from Franken. But why actually not. All the more so when it’s this good.
Funnily enough, the Scheurebe is initially even more restrained than the Chenin Blanc. Not necessarily something I had on my bingo card. When you breathe in deeply, the Scheu is truly shy. Currants, cassis, a bit of the exotic and a dash of bath additive. In a good way. Just perfumed enough that it doesn’t get on my nerves. And if it doesn’t get on my nerves, then there really is only a trace of it. It’s cool, sinewy and really straight, and thus gives the fruit exactly the framework it needs. The acidity recalls passion fruit, has enormous drive, then gives way to lots of citrus and juiciness. A wine for big gulps. And Scheurebe from Franken, you definitely need that.
On the second evening the wine opens that “I know this though” drawer in your head. The bathwater is gone, cassis has remained. It stinks a bit, in a sexy sort of way. The acidity remains fruity, juicy, intense and long, and somehow typical of Scheurebe. That might be a notch stronger than the Chenin. I really like the wine a lot. Of course I still don’t know what I’m actually smelling. Just one small sip more, until I’ll get it. Surely.