Andi Knauss, Strumpfelbach, Württemberg

Appellation: Wurttemberg-Remstal
Grapes: Riesling, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Kerner, Muller Thurgau, Trollinger, Lemberger, Pinot
Noir, Merlot.
Size: 14hectares
Production: 75000
Viticulture: Organic, Certified
Terroir: Gipskeuper.Mergel, Schilfsandstein, Kieselsandstein, Stubensandstein

Whereas winemaking was a hobby for earlier generations at this domain (a way of winding down after a day's work at the nearby
Mercedes-Benz factory), Andi Knauss has long known he wanted to be a vigneron. After wine school and a stage in Austria (where
Andi learned how to work organically in the vineyard, and to care for the soil) he took over the reins at Weingut Knauss in 2004, and
in less than 10 years, he has developed one of the most important and exciting estates we know of.  The vineyards are worked naturally,
and winemaking is careful and conscientious. Natural fermentation and minimal sulfur are the norms throughout the range, and some cuvees see no sulfur at all.

Andi, who is in his early thirties, runs a tight ship, making wine from over a hundred different plots in Strümpfelbach, the village where the winery is located, and a few surrounding villages in the hills around the river Rems. These hills are composed of different types of limestone of different eras, basically layered on top of each other, changing with the altitude, between 300 and 400 meters above sea level. Vineyard land here is expensive, but Andi has slowly built up the estate parcel by parcel, sometimes just a row, selecting the best 
sites to be blended into the "Selection" and "Reserve" bottlings.

After working with us for a couple years, Andi decided to try his hand at a few experiments, making some wines that he wanted to make, but that he wasn't sure the German market was ready for. So far these include a sparkling wine with no dosage, and Trollinger "Without all," a with no sulfur, yeast, sugars or any other additives of any shape or form (Andi even eschews adding a front label). Other goodies are on the way, including a sparkling blanc de noirs from a fine plot of Pinot Meunier (or, as it is known locally, Schwarzriesling). We are very proud of these wines (not least because it turned out that Germans do have a taste for more natural wines) and couldn't be happier with the way things have turned out.

All of the Rieslings are grown on very alkaline soils with a variety of kinds of limestone to the fore. These yield a very distinct flavor profile: firm, racy wines that have historically always been fermented dry, and which are based on a mineral core with cool fruit and a firm snap of limey acidity in the finish. This is Swabian Riesling, and it is more akin to Chablis than the apple juice that is most folks' default idea of Riesling from Germany.  ​
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PRODUCER'S WEBSITE

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WINES

Schwarzriesling Brut: 100% Schwarzriesling (Pinot Meunier) from a plot of Stubensandstein (vineyards usually reserved for the best still whites), fermented naturally, then made as a methode Champenoise sparklingwine, but with no dosage. This cuvee sees a little oak in its elevage, and goes into the bottle unsulphured. Again we have a dry, complex, serious fizz from limestone, with a little extra texture from its upbringing.
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Pet Nat Rose: 100% Pinot Noir (Spätburgunder) from 20 year-old vines grown on sandstone soils. no sulphur added.

Weingut Knauss Riesling Schnait Trocken 2020
​Riesling | dry | Wuerttemberg
AGE OF THE VINES 27 years
SOIL Upper colorful marl & stub sandstone

​whole bunch pressing, fermented and aged in 60 % Stainless steel and 40 % in used oak barrels with 600 Liter for 7 month

Trollinger "Without All": Only 10.x alcohol, fermented naturally, no sugar added, no sulfur added.  100% juice. To emphasize the absence of additives, Andi even eschewed adding a front label on the bottle. This is light, fresh and yet has a delightful texture and some nice, cleansing tannins on the finish. Perhpas the first ever Swabian no-sulfur wine, this is  somehow closer to Poulsard than Schiava, and came as total revelation when Andi showed it to us. Trollinger, who knew?

Weingut Knauss Lemberger Trocken 2020
​Marl, from the Strümpfelbach and Schnait. 80% destemmed and 20% whole bunch fermentation for 14 days before pressing and aged for 6 months in old 3000 liter oak barrels.

Knauss Red Pure 2018
Lemberger & Zweigelt from Gipskeuper & Mergel
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40 % whole bunch, fermented in old oak, 16 days skin contact, aged for 12 months in old Tonneaus & Barriques

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Brut Zero #1: 100% Riesling on Chalk, fermented naturally, then made as a methode Champenoise sparkling wine, but with no dosage. Dry, complex, serious fizz from limestone.
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PAST CUVEES

Weiß: The Knauss estate white is a blend of Kerner, Müller-Thurgau, and Riesling from a variety of limestone and keuper soils. A snappy wine that has a nice structure and and refreshing length.
 
Rose "Wurttemberg": We don’t like to say that rosé is too serious, but this is definitely a more structured, thought-provoking wine made with the dinner table in mind. 60% saignée juice of Spatburgunder, Zweigelt, Trollinger, Lemberger, and Merlot, this wine represents all soil types found at the estate. Approximately 20ppm total SO2. Pay attention to this stuff.
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Riesling Strumpfelbach: From parcels representing all different soils, fermented naturally in stainless steel and bottled fresh with a little sulphur. This "Estate" wine is dry, racy, minerally, refreshing and alarmingly drinkable. It is a great introduction to the remarkable nature of Riesling grown on limestone.

Riesling S: The Selection comes from a parcels of Stubensandstein soils on the limestone slopes facing the winery (traditionally the best site for riesling in the village). The wine enjoys a longer elevage than the G, and while it's good to drink as soon as it is bottled, it can age for 5-10 years.  This wine screams terroir. 

Riesling R: The Reserve also comes from a few designated parcels on the same slopes. It sees some wood in its elevage, as befits what is a powerful, intense wine. Long, complex, age worthy Riesling.

Lemberger G:  Swabian Bojo. Crunchy savoury fruited wine that goes with everything. The housewine in Selection Massalle's Swabian outpost. Enough said.

Lemberger S: The Lemberger S are R are two of the jewel's in Andi's portfolio. The S, from marl soils on a base of limestone is much more intense and grippy than the G. Richly fruited, yet balanced and fresh, with a punchy, spicy, nose, this has redefined our idea of this grape.  It is one of those rare red wines that can be serious or fun depending on your mood.  

Lemberger R: The Lemberger R dials up the intensity a notch further, while simultaneously revealing more of that amazing white marl terroir. The first vintages of this we tried were a little marked by elevage, but Andi's lighter touch since the 12 vintage now makes this one of our favorites in this line-up.

Pinot Noir S:  Again, grown on white/grey marl soils on a bed of limestone, the vineyard for this runs across the top portion of a fantastically well exposed slope in the neighboring village of Schnait.  The vines here give a red fruited Pinot of great balance and texture, with a fine mineral structure.

Pinot Noir R:  These vines sit on an exposed ridge on the slope above Strumpfelbach. It's the kind of place where the breeze is cold even on a hot summer day. By way of contrast to the S, this a more black fruited Pinot, trading sap and texture for crunchy zip. As with the
Lemberger R, Andi is beginning to really master the elevage on this, with each successive vintage seeming finer and yet at the same time more natural.

Rote Reben G: A blend of parcels of zweigelt, portuguiser and other red grapes from in and around Strumpfelbach, this has surprisingly rich bold, black fruit for what is, as close examination of the label will tell you, still German red wine. The fruit is balanced by the crunchy acidity provided by Andi's amazing terroirs, and in this case it makes for a very versatile table red. Tuesday night steak wine par excellence.

Zweigelt S: As with the majority of Andi's reds this is from marl / limestone soils. The Zweigelt from these vines is fresh, zippy, and eschews the blocky tannins that often plague this variety. In contrast to the more exuberant fruit of the lembergers, the flavors here tend more towards the tertiary, and make this a great wine for red meat.

Merlot S: A tiny amount of younger vines Merlot is bottled as the S each vintage. It affirms that marl clays and limestone suit merlot just as well as they suit pinots.

Altenberg R: There has been Merlot in the hills around the River Rems for a long, long time. The plots that make up 80% of Andi's Altenberg Reserve bottling lie in a natural amphitheatre created by the hills above the winery in Strumpfelbach. This site yields a naturally ripe wine, with plenty of structure and acidity from the soil. Into this Andi blends around 20% old vine Lemberger, producing a cuvee that is at once a nod to the Bordeaux style blend, and at the same time, very much of its place.

​Trollinger S:  Andi has really started to nail this wine in recent vintages. Whereas that "Without All" is all about texture and glou, the S is racy and crunchy. If we had to use one word, it would be svelte. Svelte Trollinger, who knew?