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Default [LONG] A Visit to Enderle & Moll

Our recent trip to Germany included a free day en route from Bavaria to
Frankfurt, so -- through the generous agency of their US importer Lyle
Fass -- I secured an appointment with Enderle and Moll, a winemaking duo
in the Kaiserstuhl region of Baden. As agreed, I met Sven Enderle at an
intersection in Ettenheim and he conducted me to their facility in
neighboring Münchweier. (He explained to me that their facility didn't
such up correctly on GPS, hence the indirect arrival). The next 4 hours
were spent in their cellar, with Sven conducting me through a tasting of
their current releases as well as several barrel samples.

He explained that their partnership began when they met in oenology
school, where they were the only two students in their class who
actually enjoyed drinking wine. After going their separate ways, they
stayed in touch and eventually rejoined in 2007 to being this joint
venture. Their approach is a minimalistic one, with nothing added to
the wine beyond some sulfites at bottling. Their viticulture is
conducted by hand and they employ close to a Biodynamic approach.
According to Enderle, he is the farming end of the operation, with
Florian Moll doing the business end.

We began with a NV Sekt made from Pinot Gris and Müller-Thurgau, which
was yeasty and somewhat simple. Sven explained that it was made from
grapes that they were unsure of how to use. From there, we went on to a
2011 Müller-Thurgau. My experiences with this grape in the past have
been less than awe-inspiring, so it was with some skepticism that I
tried their Müller-Thurgau. It defied my low expectations with a nose
that was herbal, verging on grassy, with juicy fruitiness. On the
palate, it was light, with crisp acidity and greenish flavors. Light
and uncomplicated, it would be great on a hot summer's day. We next
sampled their 2011 Pinot Gris which was vinifiied with skin contact.
Not an orange wine per se, but deiinitely shading toward the copper hue
of Pinot Gris. The nose was fascinating, with a pronounced mineral
streak, but also red currant fruit and orange peel. On the palate, it
had high acidity and fairly smooth tannins and was fairly light in body,
especially considering the variety. Sven Enderle stated that they
weren't fans of Pinot Gris, but because of contractual obligations they
were stuck with some so decided to experiment with its vinification. As
another non-fan of Pinot Gris, I supported their decision with my view
that this was one of the more appealing examples of the grape that I've
tasted in recent years. We finished the white wine selection with the
2011 "Kaya," a blend of 95% Riesling and 5% Pinot Blanc. The nose was
classic PB: floral and stony. On the palate, however, it was all about
the Riesling, with a light, citrusy entry, peachy fruit and an off-dry
finish. When I asked why they didn't make a varietal Pinot Blanc, Sven
explained that they didn't have the fruit to do it.

From there, we moved on to barrel samples. First up was the 2012 Skin
Contact Pinot Gris. It was lighter than the earlier version, with more
overt citrus notes and a very fresh palate impression. Following that
was a 2012 Rosé of Pinot Noir, which had lovely PN fruit, but had a
pronounced lactic note that took a long time to dissipate. We then
began to try the Pinot Noirs. All of their wines are stored in neutral
oak barriques that they get used from Domaine Dujac. Their entry level
Pinot Noir is the Liaison, a blend of several different vineyards.
Because they hadn't yet done the blending of their 2012 Liaison, we
tasted the various components. First up was the young vine parcel from
15-year old vines. It had a very interesting savory nose, with beef
blood atop raspberryish fruit. On the palate, it was medium bodied with
smooth tannins. For contrast, we next tried the old vine parcel (from
50+ year old vines). It again had the savory, beef blood note, but the
fruit was more red cherry in character. On the palate, it had a fresh,
vital character to it and medium body. The next parcel was a mixture of
30-, 40- and 50-year old vines. It had a stinky, burnt match character
to the nose and muted fruit on the palate. Sven Enderle mentioned that
a famous musician wanted a barrel of their wine for a celebration and
had chosen this funky barrel as the most interesting (though, later, he
chose anpther). The last two barrel samples will get bottled as single
vineyard wines. The first, the Muschelkalk, comes from a vineyard with
decomposed limestone soil. The wine had a strong mineral note in the
nose, along with red berry fruit. On the palate, it had vivid acidity
and smooth tannins in a medium bodied package. The other vineyard, the
Buntsandstein, is on sandstone soil, and had a spicier nose, with bright
red fruits and somewhat lighter body on the palate.

The Pinot Noirs were each quite distinct and all very good, with very
pure fruit and no trace of new oak. We talked at some length about the
sources of the differences between the various vineyards, soil vs.
mycorrhizal influences, etc. Sven Enderle is both passionate and
articulate, even in English, and a marvelous host. I ended the visit
with a profound appreciation for the work that these two are doing and
the quality of the wines that they produce.

Mark Lipton
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Default [LONG] A Visit to Enderle & Moll

On Friday, August 16, 2013 12:35:06 AM UTC-4, Mark Lipton wrote:
"He explained that their partnership began when they met in oenology
school, where they were the only two students in their class who
actually enjoyed drinking wine."

That is just so great, on so many levels.

Thanks for writeup, now on my radar
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Default [LONG] A Visit to Enderle & Moll

DaleW > wrote in news:156330bb-c07f-41aa-ae62-73935c5d24a5
@googlegroups.com:

> On Friday, August 16, 2013 12:35:06 AM UTC-4, Mark Lipton wrote:
> "He explained that their partnership began when they met in oenology
> school, where they were the only two students in their class who
> actually enjoyed drinking wine."
>
> That is just so great, on so many levels.


In Spain, I find that many, many, many people -if not most- in the wine
industry,specially intermediaries and waiters.. do not enjoy wine and don't
purchase wine for their own consumption.

Amazing.

s.
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