Top 100 wines of Ahr
Discover the top 100 best wines of Ahr as well as the best winemakers in the region. Explore the varietals of the wines that are popular of Ahr and the best vintages to taste in this region.
Discovering the wine region of Ahr
Ahr is one of Germany’s least-known and Northernmost wine regions, known for its Pinot Noir reds. It Lies immediately north of the Mosel, and follows the Ahr River in the Final stages of its journey towards its confluence with the Rhein.
One might expect a wine region this far north (50°N) to specialize in white wines – like almost every other cool-Climate wine region. After all, neighboring Mosel and Mittelrhein both clearly favor white wines (around 85 percent).
However Ahr producing around 85 percent red wines, of which around three-quarters are made from Spätburgunder (Pinot Noir). The classic example is brick red in Color and smells of red cherries, Sweetspices and forest floor. Barrel-aging can add spice and savory notes.
Ahr Pinot Noir is now a much more Serious, modern and "international" wine style that it once was.
Until 30 years ago, the wines were often slightly sweet and very pale. Today they are invariably Dry and deeper in color – although still much paler than the inky Pinots found in, say, Central Otago.
Across Germany (most obviously in Pfalz and Baden), assisted by climate change, the popularity of Pinot Noir has been steadily increasing. The wave of interest has carried German Spätburgunder to new heights, and saved from near-extinction the earlier-ripening Pinot Noir clone, Fruhburgunder.
Discover the grape variety: Müller-Thurgau
Müller-Thurgau shows the character of its noble origins. This Swiss white grape variety is a cross between the royal madeleine and the riesling. The idea that the latter was crossed with the sylvaner is irrelevant. The variety can be recognized by its vigorous character and its semi-erect habit. Preferring rich soils and short prunings, the plant sees its buds open quite early. The buds are cottony and soft green in color. The slightly embossed and tormented blade, with 5 to 7 lobes, makes it possible to distinguish the adult leaves. The clusters appear compact, pyramidal or cylindrical in shape and small to medium in size. The flavour of the Müller-Turgau berries is reminiscent of Muscat. The juicy and crunchy pulp is revealed under a greyish skin. When ripe, the fruit has a mottled shell on a golden yellow background. Switzerland prefers to extract the juice from this variety. The wine made from it is rather heavy and does not keep well.
Food and wine pairing with a wine of Ahr
wines from the region of Ahr go well with generally quite well with dishes of vegetarian, beef or veal such as recipes of summer tuna quiche, autumn beef bourguignon or chicken and sausage stew with carrots.
Organoleptic analysis of wine of Ahr
On the nose in the region of Ahr often reveals types of flavors of tree fruit, red fruit or earth and sometimes also flavors of citrus fruit, non oak or oak. In the mouth in the region of Ahr is a with a nice freshness.
News from the vineyard of Ahr
Côte-Rôtie & Condrieu 2020: report and top-scoring wines
Tasting the 2020 Côte-Rôties reminded me of the 2016s – while some are on the light side, the wines are ripe with a fine tannic frame. They are noticeably more slender and less potent than the previous few vintages and will drink well straight away. Scroll down for tasting notes and scores for the Côte-Rôtie & Condrieu 2020 top-scoring wines {"content":"PHA+U3TDqXBoYW5lIE9naWVyIGJlbGlldmVzIHRoZSBjb29sIG5pZ2h0cyB3ZXJlIGFuIGltcG9ydGFudCBmYWN0b3IgaW4gdGhlIGZyZXNoZXIgc3R5bGUgb2Ygd ...
Lilian Bérillon: vine supplier to the stars
You don’t need a state-of-the-art winery to make wine. You don’t need rows of pristine oak barrels. One thing you do need to make good wine is good vines. Have you ever asked yourself where all these vines come from? How do they find their way into the ground? It used to be easy. In the past, winemakers simply took cuttings from their vineyards, propagated them, and planted them in the ground. But phylloxera put a stop to that. What was a simple process acquired layers of complexity: winemakers ...
Behind LVMH’s Himalayan wine project: the villages of Ao Yun
It’s no easy task to establish a super-premium wine in an entirely new region, particularly when inviting potential retail partners or distributors to the vineyard involves journeying to a distant corner of the Himalayas in the outer reaches of the Yunnan province, southwestern China. For my journey, after four flights from Bordeaux to Shanghai, Chengdu then Shangri-La, it was a four-hour drive up through stunning mountain passes to the foothills (here, that means 2,200m above sea level) of the ...