Riesling GG Monopol 2022 1500ml Magnum

Wine description for Riesling GG Monopol 2022 1500ml Magnum by Odinstal

Character

A Riesling of remarkably clear signature: bone-dry, taut, underpinned by smoky minerality and precise acidity. The cool, high-altitude site bestows freshness and tension; the magnum bottle promises a particularly slow, controlled evolution in the cellar. A wine that does not conceal its origin but celebrates it — more demanding than immediately approachable, yet therein lies its very allure.

Terroir & Origin

The monopole vineyard site Wachenheimer Odinstal sits at 350 metres above sea level, surrounded by ten hectares of mixed forest, high above the Rhine Valley. A geological singularity within the Palatinate: due to the fault lines of the Rhine Graben, basalt, shell limestone, Keuper and coloured sandstone converge here within a remarkably small area. The vines ripen around 20 days later than those in the valley — this extended growing season imparts depth and complexity alongside cool precision.

Grape Variety & Vinification

Riesling is the principal grape variety of this VDP estate. Estate manager Andreas Schumann has worked according to Demeter-certified biodynamic principles, certified since 2013. In the cellar, the principle of non-intervention prevails: spontaneous fermentation without temperature control, extended ageing on the lees, minimal sulphur addition. The wines become as dry as they wish — most often decidedly bone-dry. At just 12.0% abv, it becomes evident that power here derives not from alcohol but from substance. Schumann’s credo — identical cellar techniques across different soils — renders the geology virtually tangible: volcanic depth from basalt, saline length from limestone.

Food Pairings

Its taut acidity and smoky minerality make it an ideal everyday wine for refined cuisine: steamed char with herbs, sashimi or raw scallops find a worthy counterpart in this wine. It also shows great class alongside Asian dishes with lemongrass, Pfalz Saumagen (stuffed pig’s stomach), or simply with young, piquant hard cheeses. Those with patience will do well to grant the magnum a few years of rest — the high-altitude site has endowed it with the gift of long, graceful maturation.