Enderle & Moll Whites
– Huge Cult Following for the Standard Ones
– They Finally Made Ageworthy Super Cuvees of the Whites
– Florian Thinks Easily the Best Whites He’s Ever Made
The Style
– A Strong Burgundian Sensibility
– The Terroir Shines Through
– Classic Burgundian Structure
2021 Enderle & Moll Grauburgunder “Skins”
– From 40-50 Year Old Grauburgunder Vines
– Nose: Utterly Glorious
– Cascading Waves of Nuance
– Rhubarb
– Pine Resin
– Applesauce
– Spices
– Minerals
– Citrus Ckin and Some Citrus Flesh
– So Clean
– So Clear and So Precise
– Palate: So Chewy and Dense
– Tremendous Structure and Crunch
– Loads of Fresh Citrus Fruits
– So Complete, So Delicious
– Unreal Purity – Must be Tasted to Be Believed
2021 Enderle & Moll Weissburgunder “Sphere”
– Absolutely a Grand Cru Wine
– From 60-70 Year Old Weissgunder Vines
– Nose – the Perfect Instantiation of Weissburgunder
– Creamy
– Citrus
– Spices
– Apple, Apple Skins
– White Peach
– Beeswax
– Just A Hint of Honey
– Classic White Burg Aromas
– Grilled Nuts, Citrus and Pear
– Richerer than the Skins
– But Balanced with 21 Acidity and Stoicism
– So, So Intense
– Energetic
– Scary Elegant
– Terrific Purity and Intensity
“They are very focused and fine. That was the goal. I wanted these top-whites with a maximum of soil- and grape variety-expression. No yeasty-touch, no high maceration, no extra skin contact.” – Florian Moll
A Turning Point for White Natural Wines
This will be another offer that is a bit more raw but I feel it’s important in order to effectively communicate how stunning these wines are.
I don’t like natural wine. I don’t like orange wine and I don’t like skin contact wine. So naturally that’s why I am selling two today. But hear me out.
In general here are the things about these style of wines I dislike.
- They can be flawed and yet people say they aren’t and make excuses for them
- They can be dirty wines and are the result of sloppy winemaking
- Many of them obfuscate terroir for the sake of the process
- As a result of the process, many of these wines can taste the same.
Having said that I think we are at a turning point for these styles of wines. In 2021, Enderle & Moll decided to make two Grand Cru wines in a style that would allow them to be counterparts to the famous Muschelkalk and Bundtstanstein Pinot Noir Grand Crus. They are the two wines I will be selling today. The Spheres and the Skins. The Spheres is Weissburgunder and the Skins is Grauburgunder.
Simply put, these arethe best white wines I have ever had from Enderle & Molland they are also the best skin contact white wines I have ever had. They transcend the category, and as one client who was just there and tasted them says, “Enderle & Moll has created a new genre of wines.” They are the cleanest, purest skin contact natural white wines I have ever had and also have a strong Burgundian sensibility to them. They don’t obfuscate the terroir (which is what many natural whites do, with a process that is too heavy handed and dominant which is why I dislike them.) The process that Enderle & Moll uses now actually enhances the terroir, as in the Weissburgunder Spheres especially, where you get the whole wet earth thing going on and classic Burgundian structure. These are genius wines of the highest level and absolutely blew me away and made me rethink what can be achieved with skin contact natural whites. These are the perfect middle ground where terroir and process marry perfectly. I can’t recommend these enough. Now, onto my notes.
The Wines
First up is the 2021 Enderle & Moll Grauburgunder “Skins” for $41.99 a bottle on a 4-pack. I think this is the Fass 4-2-2 plan which I am debuting today. Buy 4 wines, drink TWO young and then age two for 5-6 years. I think these will reward mid term aging in a way that makes these wines even better, but there is also a deliciousness that they have when young that is just uncanny and one bottle isn’t enough to drink young. This is from 40-50 year old Grauburgunder vines in shell-limestone soil from a puny .50 ha plot. This is hand worked in the vineyard and hand harvested at 30-40 hl/ha. It goes through 6-7 days maceration time in 700 liter small boxes with 25% of the stems for soft pressing in the middle of the fermentation and directly filling in small barrels with the yeasts along with no filtration and no sulphur added.
They do batonnage 5-6 times during the first year the wine is in barrels and then taking the wine out of the barrels in August 2022 (when I was there) and give it another 8 months in contact with the yeasts in a steel tank. They bottle without filtration and with only enough sulphur to keep the wine stable.
The color of this wine is like an orange pink that is reminiscent of salmon. Look at the picture and just look at that color. Gorgeous.
What a nose. This is natural wine but not the wild freak show types that can be undrinkable. This is in my sweet spot. Nose is glorious. Rhubarb, pine resin, applesauce, spices, minerals, citrus skin and some citrus flesh with just new nuances every 20 seconds or so. Also some tree bark and wet leaves. This is so clean, so clear and so precise. Insane aromatics. Wow that nose keeps getting more and more expansive and it’s just so clean. Wow the confectionary aromas are just so mindblowing.
Palate is chewy and dense with awesome acids and tremendous structure and crunch. Elegant and sapid with amazing length and complexity. So juicy with loads of fresh citrus fruits and waves and waves of flavor and depth. Insanely long finish. I am blown away. Dizzying. Now after air this is gaining tannin and finesse. I am so impressed and usually I dislike this style of wine immensely. This is just so complete, so delicious and has purity that must be tasted to be believed.
Next up is the 2021 Enderle & Moll Weissburgunder “Sphere” for $42.99 a bottle on a 4-pack and the name is perfect as once the air hits it (maybe an hour in) this wine is a perfect sphere on your palate. This is made the exact same way as the Grauburgunder except the vines are older (60-70 years) and the plot is bigger at 1.5 hectares.
Nose is so Weiss. Creamy, citrus, spices, apple, apple skins, white peach and some nice earthy leaves. Tree bark as well. Nose has some slight honeyed notes and beeswax. The nose has hints of classic white Burg aromas like wet dog and wet earth as it airs. And that spice really kicks it up a notch after air. Also lemon grass, brioche and toasted bread which are classic Pinot Blanc aromas. Gorgeous aromas of grilled nuts, citrus and pear. Also after many many hours of air there are some apricots, peaches and watermelon. Even a hint of very fine honey.
Palate is richer and creamier than the Skins but has that 21 acidity and stoicism. Textured, juicy and very very long with great sap and awesome citrus and stone fruits that echo for ages on the finish. Wow this is intense and has so much energy. Clean like the Skins and more like a normal wine but also has 30% natural character and wow that finish is amazing. With air this is now scary elegant and like the name suggests it’s very sphere like. Wow. What is so special about this wine is how weightless it is on the palate but also has terrific purity and intensity. It’s just this perfect orb or sphere that is like neat a great natural white Burgundy would be if made from Pinot Blanc and by Enderle & Moll. This is great now but is on the Fass 4-3-1 plan, as I think this is really built to age and will be even better in 7-10 years.
Please call Cheryl at 949 378 5251 after emailing with your first order if you are a first time customer (we prefer not to receive credit card numbers over E-Mail).
OFFICE HOURS 4-7 PM
I love drinking and selecting wines – but my passion for teaching people about wine is almost as big. I’m happy to announce a block of time each day where people can call me just to chat about wine in general. These blocks are NOT intended to sell wine (I do that all day). This is to talk to me about wine pairings or great producers or how long to age wines or styles of wine making or the latest wine controversy. My goal is to help people learn more about wine and enjoy it more. Call me at 917-912-4355 from 4-7EST Monday – Friday.
|
|
A Word about Fass Selections and Social Media
I am big into certain social media and I want people to take pictures of the wines they have received or will receive and tag me in them and share their thoughts. I a am on Instagram. Please tag me there. I also am on Delectable which I love a lot. It is Iphone/Ipad only, but it’s like Instagram meets Facebook for wine. Tag me there and find me there as well. I want to know if you liked the wine, were not moved by the wine, hated the wine or the wine gave you a religious experience. I want to know it all. Feedback is key and I will answer all feedback e-mails as quickly as I can.
For all billing and invoicing inquiries please contact Rick at refassselections@gmail.com.