What makes Leitz's Riesling wines so sought-after and special? It all starts with the Rüdesheimer mountain and its steep slopes stretching down to the Rhine. A thin layer of soil over slate and quartzite means the Riesling vines have their work cut out to survive such a demanding environment. And, the vines in the Schlossberg vineyard are over 40 years old.
There is a vibrancy and elegance within the purity of Riesling fruit. An almost crystal-like minerality to the impressive lime zest and honey palate. Fans of Riesling will already know the buzz you get from the very best Riesling wines. Those yet to experience it are certain to become Riesling converts for life.
Whilst you can enjoy this wine now, it'll continue to at least 2030.
There's one name that stands out in the Rheingau German wine region, and that's Weingut Leitz. Johannes Leitz took over the family estate back in 1985 when vineyard holdings were a minuscule 2.6 ha. Based around the town of Rüdesheim, today Leitz's vineyards have grown to over 43 ha, most of these are grand cru sites on the slopes of Rüdesheimer Berg (berg meaning mountain).
Along with Dr Loosen Wines, Leitz has done much to introduce the wider world to some of Germany's best wines, due to exporting some of their top wines around the globe. These world-class Riesling wines should be on every white wine lover's bucket list.
It'll come as no surprise that the grapes are hand-harvested. Just you try driving a tractor up vineyard slopes like that. They're pressed with great care, to preserve the pristine aromas and fruit of the extremely high-quality free run juice. Along with all Leitz's Grosses Gewächs (the 'grand crus' of German wine), fermentation is allowed to start naturally, in this case in old wooden barrels.
Johannes Leitz chooses to mix how he bottles his wines. The everyday wines that were fermented in stainless steel with inoculated yeasts are sealed with stelvin screwcaps, whereas the fine wines, like this Schlossberg Ehrenfelz Riesling, get a premium quality cork which he believes aids the wine's development in bottle.
You could almost get vertigo looking down the steep slopes of the Schlossberg vineyard. At the bottom is the old 11th century Ehrenfelz castle. Its purpose was to take a toll from the river traffic, using a chain to obstruct boats until they'd paid.
If you dig into the soil of this precipitous vineyard you'd find only 30 cm of soil before you came across shiny slate. It's what gives the vines a remarkable play between acidity and fruit (sometimes called 'minerality'). Johannes Leitz puts the success of the wine down to meticulous vineyard care and the age of the vines.
The Rheingau German wine region is pretty small, stretching only 20 miles along the majestic Rhine river. Yet it produces some of the most stunning Riesling white wines in the world.
The delicate crab meat calls for a smooth, fruity, floral white or rosé which doesn't overpower the meat - try this Leitz Riesling or Southern French rosés with good weight of fruit.
The classic gamey flavours of quail combined with salty ham call for a rich, decadent, earthy red wine or, a high-end Rheingau Riesling, such as this form Leitz, to balance the salt and fruit as something a little out of the ordinary.
The wholesome, rich and earthy flavours of mushroom risotto pair perfectly aged and oaked reds. The Leitz winemaker suggests this beautiful Rüdesheimer Berg Schlossberg Riesling as a match to mushroom risotto to balance the herbal notes and acidity.