Beautifully Burklins
By Daniel Lim

The vineyards of Pflaz as seen above. Usage of images is courtesy of Ms. Lina Rukma (Germany).

A line up of Riesling wines from Bürklin Wolf.

The wines of Germany, particularly its white wines - Rieslings is fast becoming a hot favorite amongst Chinese wine lovers and connoisseurs in Asia. From 2005 and 2007 onwards, with each successful vintage, good German producers had been presenting wave after wave of quality and flavorful wines. They are very food friendly, lower in alcohol, and goes well with most food trends, including Chinese food. They can be priced variedly and some are very expensive, but most good German wines today represent great value.

Bürklin Wolf’s representative: Ms. Annette Siegrist.

Recently, we met Bürklin Wolf, whom is a wine producer from the wine region of Pflaz. The word Pfalz, comes from the Latin word palatium, meaning palace. After the Rheinhessen, the Pfalz is the next largest wine region in Germany. Pflaz is also home to some 45 white and 22 red grape varieties, but Riesling and Müller-Thurgau dominates the white wines; while Dornfelder, Portugieser and Spätburgunder make up for the red wine category. The region’s Müller-Thurgau produces very pleasant, soft, full-bodied white wines with good aroma. Their Riesling has a style ranging from dry to lusciously sweet. While Portugieser’s style is smooth and fruity. Dornfelder is interesting and can be complex, but that depends on who the winemaker and their winemaking techniques is.

The estate’s Export Manager, Ms. Annette Siegrist (as seen above) who oversees Bürklin Wolf’s wines in the International market said her wine style is, “fresh, youthful, crispy when well chilled.”

There was a discussion on the tendency to drink Riesling while they are young. Which Annette totally agrees and encourages,” We want our wines to be drunk young and not cellared, and they are flavorful and elegant due to its mineral soil. They are also especially popular with female wine drinkers“.

Bürklin Wolf, is the largest family-owned wine estate with 110 hectares, and located in the village of Wachenheim in the Pfalz wine-growing region in Germany. First founded in the 16th century, the biodynamic estate had been run by Bettina Bürklin von Guradze since 1992.

The vineyard area totals 85 hectares, with holdings in four vineyard areas: Deidesheim (Hohenmorgen, Kalkofen and Langenmorgen sites), Forst (Jesuitengarten, Kirchenstück, Pechstein and Ungeheuer), Rupperstberg (Gaisböhl, Hoheburg und Reiterpfad) and Wachenheim (Altenburg, Böhlig, Gerümpel, Goldbächel and Rechbächel).

Of the 85 hectares owned by Bürklin, 60 hectares are planted with Riesling. The rest is planted with red varieties like Pinot Noir, Dornfelder, Merlot, Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Tempranillo, Grenache and Syrah and white wine varietal Pinot Blanc. The best wines are marketed as G.C. (for Guradze Christian) and P.C. (for Phillip and Christian Bürklin). While the normal Rieslings are marked Estate, the association with the Burgundian labeling system (Grand Cru and Premier Cru) is intentional, which makes their wine labels easier to relate and remembered. The estate makes some 600,000 bottles, or 50,000 cases yearly. Some 25% to 30% is exported (with Germany being the largest market, followed by Spain and US) including Japan, Thailand, Shanghai, Beijing and Singapore.

Overall, the Rieslings of Bürklin Wolf is interesting and has complexity when aged for 3 to 5 years: while they are most famous for its dry Rieslings, they are fuller bodied than most of their Mosel counterparts, with higher alcohol and a good fruit character. Generally speaking, the Riesling wines of Burklin Wolf are priced reasonably and remain within reach to the average wine consumer.

The wines of Bürklin Wolf is represented in Asia by the following Chinese wine importers; Taste of Tradition and boutique wine retailer, Booze Wine Shop in Singapore, and Globus Wine in China.

For more information, please contact:

Dr. Bürklin-Wolf
Tel: +49 63 2295 3333, +49 63 2295 3355
Fax: +49 63 2295 3330
Email: bb@buerklin-wolf.de
Website: www.buerklin-wolf.de

Globus Wine
Shanghai Tel: +86 21 5465 2774
Beijing Tel: +86 134 2642 6245
Email: info@globus-wine.com

Taste of Tradition
Singapore Tel: +65 6299 9300
Email: info@tastetradition.com