Description

PRODUCER:
The legendary Schloss Johannisberg is steeped in history. The vineyards were planted on the orders of the Roman Emperor Charlemagne. Planted solely with Riesling grapes in 1720, Schloss Johannisberg was the world’s first Riesling Estate and plays a significant part in wine history. It was here in 1775 that the Spätlese quality was discovered using late-picked grapes suffering from “noble rot”. Following this discovery, in 1787, the estate gave Auslese, Beerenauslese and Trockenbeerenauslese to the wine world. Schloss Johannisberg is a single vineyard designation in its own right and one of a handful of German vineyards that does not have to display a village name on the label. Recently, Schloss Johannisberg was awarded Continent Winner: Best Vineyard in Europe 2025 in the Top 100 of the World’s Best Vineyards Awards 2025.

VINEYARD:
The grapes come from the single vineyard of Schloss Johannisberg. The south-facing vineyard is steep, with a 45° gradient and is situated between 114 metres and 181 metres above sea level. The forest on the top of the Taunus Mountains protects the vineyard from cold winds from the north. To the south, the River Rhine gently flows in front of the estate, in the foothills of the vineyard. The 50° parallel runs directly through the vineyard, and the unique soils of Taunus quartz, topped with loam and rich loess retains moisture and heat, encouraging the vines to ripen. This soil formation imparts the classic mineral characteristic, which is evident in this wine. The vineyard is cultivated manually, and the harvest takes place by hand.

WINEMAKING:
The term ‘Auslese’ means ‘select harvest’ where the botryitsed grapes are hand-selected between 83 to 130 Oechsle and produce a sweet wine. Following a careful selection process to ensure only the highest quality fruit was vinified, the grapes were pressed in whole clusters. A slow, long and cool fermentation took place with wild yeasts under temperature-controlled conditions, maintaining the purity of fruit in the wine.

TASTING NOTE:
A rich and textured Auslese with complex, honeyed aromas and notes of ripe pineapple, this is classically elegant with beautifully balanced sweetness and an outstandingly long finish.

GRAPES:
Riesling 100%.