Producer
Emrich Schonleber
In the western fringes of the breathtaking Nahe Valley, in the village of Monzingen, sits the mighty Weingut Emrich-Schönleber. Schönleber is one of the top names in the Nahe and, much like Donnhoff, the focus is on single vineyard wines. The family has been making wine since the 1960s and their 19 hectares of vines are rooted in the precious quartzite and slate soils that define the Nahe. Sheltered by the Soonwald forest in the north and blessed with abundant sunshine, thanks to the dizzyingly steep southwest facing slopes, this terroir is the stuff that Riesling dreams are made. Pure, clear-cut, and profoundly mineral, the wines shine in their purity. Winemaker Frank Schönleber took over from his father in 2018 but has been working at the estate since 2005. The emphasis is on meticulous attention to detail in the vineyard and Frank carries out spontaneous fermentation in old oak casks, along with ageing in steel vats. The Halenburg is the smallest vineyard in the village of Monzingen and a jewel in the Schönleber crown. Precipitous, the 70% gradient makes tending to this vineyard a labour of love, but the results generate a Riesling of such finely wrought structure and mineral saltiness that have immense ageing potential. The Monzinger Riesling Trocken Fruhtau from the cool, precise 2016 vintage is a hidden gem. German labelling laws do not allow you to denote the name of a vineyard on a second wine that you make from a Grosses Gewächs vineyard. Cleverly labelled Frühtau (morning dew), this ‘village wine’ is actually the second wine from the Grosse Lage Frühlingsplätzchen, made from the younger vines. A great insider’s tip!
