Weingut Carl Ehrhard

(Rheingau, Germany) 

On some of the best grounds in Rüdhesheim sit ten acres of old vines tended by Carl and Petra Ehrhard. The winery was founded 150 years ago. Since 1998, the couple has tried to merge the traditional and the innovative: old vineyard management and modern winemaking equipment. Beautifully clean stainless steel tanks line the cellar next to old oak barrels. Riesling vines (90%) flourish among Pinot Noir (10%). The soils are mostly ancient slate soils crumbling down the steep slopes. During harvest, Carl pays special attention to the ripening of his grapes, picking in multiple passes and picking out those affected by Botrytis. In the cellar, fermentations are temperature-controlled, gentle and slow. With the whites, there is minimal filtration, to preserve natural residual sugars and bottled with little air contact. The reds ferment in open top vats, are aged in oak and are never filtered.

www.weingut-carlehrhard.de/

 

Rudesheim, Riesling Trocken

100% Riesling

Hand-harvested from 10 year old vines from a three vineyards: Berg Roseneck, Kirchenweg and Bischofsberg. Fermentation occurs in both 1200L stainless steel tanks and 1200L barrels and after fermentation completes, the two exchange vessels so that all wines mature in wood for at least 2-3 months. The wine is allowed to rest for two days before bottling on the fine lees, without any sulfer added, and then filtered once.

Alc: 11.0% - RS: 2.7 g/L

Rheingau Landwein, Riesling Trocken, “Frau Ehrhard”

100% Riesling

Hand Harvested from 4-50 year old vines grown in Quartz and Limestone soil from two vineyards, Bischofsberg and Tafel. Fermentation occurs spontaneously in open stainless steel with 3 months maceration. The wine is then transferred into 1200L and 600L wooden barrels where it ages another 18 months.

Rheingauer Landwein, Riesling Trocken, 'Herr Ehrhard' Unfiltered

100% Riesling

From two vineyards, Drachenstein (38 years) and Roseneck (36 years), to quartzite soils with southern exposure, the grapes are hand-harvested at the beginning of October, de-stemmed and sorted in the cellar. Maceration lasts 12 hours followed by spontaneous fermentation in large wooden barrels (1200L) that lasts 12 weeks without temperature control. The wine spends a total of 12 months on lees, without stirring, and is aged for 13 months in a combination of two 1200L and one 600L barrels. Unfiltered.

 

Rudsheimer, Berg Rottland, Riesling Trocken, “Rottland”

100% Riesling

Hand harvested from 55 year old vines grown in Quartz soil from a single vineyard, Berg Rottland. The grapes macerate for 12 hours before being transferred into 1200L wooden barrels to ferment spontaneously for 3 months. Afetrward, the wine ages another 11 months in wooden barrel.

Finished with .06g/L SO2