Elena Walch is a 5th-generation, family owned vineyard whose roots go back to 1869 (oldest family estate) in a region -- Alto Adige -- dominated by wine Cooperatives (70% of all wine production). But the winery has not always been named Elena Walch. Rather, Elena, who is an architect by training, married into the wine family and, after "bringing new, modern concepts to the traditional establishment," asked her husband to place her name on the bottle to reward her efforts. And he agreed. Today Elena is joined in the business by her daughters Julia and Karoline.
The 60-ha estate is located in the foothills of the Dolomites, sheltered by the Alps to the north and open to the south. Its winemaking philosophy calls for wines that are individual expressions of their terroir and cultivation and whose source vines are maintained sustainably. The quality of the wine, they believe, is a function of the quality of the vineyard and the amount of effort expended in caring for the vines and land.
While the estate is located in the far north -- from a winemaking perspective -- it is rather warm in the spring and summer, with a Mediterranean climate bleeding in from the south. There is a huge day-night temperature differential which makes it easy to ripen grapes but also allows acid retention and for the grapes to develop the full spectrum of fruit aromas
The estate's vineyard holdings are shown in the chart below and include two plots with the Vigna (or cru) designation: Castel Ringberg and Kastelaz. The characteristics of the vineyards follow.
According to Karoline, all of the vineyards are terraced and farming/harvesting is done by hand. The vineyards are farmed sustainably with practices to include (elenawalch.com):
- Production of their own compost at Castel Ringberg
- No synthetic herbicide use
- Milling the grassy areas and seeding various types of legumes to stimulate soil fertility and enhance root residence
- Mulching the vineyards to increase soil-nutrient content
- Monitoring water-use requirement of vines and using drip-irrigation
- Alternating mowing of rows to preserve the natural habitat of beneficial insects
- Leaf-pulling to allow better aeration and a reduction in disease risk.
Fifty-five percent of the estate's wine production is white wines made from varieties such as Pinot Grigio, Gewurtztraminer, Pinot Bianco, and Chardonnay. Red varieties include Lagrein, Schiava, and Pinot Nero. According to Karoline, they grow a large number of varieties because of the number of different terroirs afforded by the diversity of soils, altitudes, and elevations.
The Wines
I bought the estate's Sauvignon, Rosé, and Pinot Nero from an online distributor and was encouraged to deep digger into the offerings. Swirlery, a local wineshop, took on the task of securing additional wines for me. My thoughts on the wines follow.
2018 Beyond the Clouds -- This wine came highly recommended. The various grape varieties are picked as soon as the Chardonnay reaches optimum maturity. The grapes are then crushed and co-fermented in new French oak barriques. Some portion of the wine undergoes malolactic fermentation. The wine is aged in barrique for 10 months, with regular stirring of the lees, and then in bottle for 6 months before release on the market.
Green herbs, savory, pungent, sweet fruit, spice, sweet resin, and honeycomb on the nose. Green lime on the palate. Persistence, with spice and a herby savoriness. Weighty, with good acid levels. Hint of green tamarind. Finish could have been longer.
2018 Vigna Castel Ringberg Sauvignon -- Static clarification through must-refrigeration. Part stainless steel, part barrique fermentation with assemblage just prior to bottling. Some time in bottle prior to release.
This was the first of the estate's wines that I tasted. I enjoyed this wine. Intense minerality, ripe honeydew melon, herbs, citurs, beer, green grass, green papaya, and an oily texture on the nose. Intense minerality on the palate. Bright acidity with some stemminess. Green apple. Coating on the palate. Juicy salinity and paprika.
2018 Vigna Kastellaz Gewurtztraminer -- Carefully selected grapes harvested in two passes. Grapes are cold macerated for 6 hours prior to pressing. Juice clarified by refrigeration and natural sedimentation. Fermented with selected yeasts.
Beautiful aromatics. Lychee, minerality, sweet barley, and green herbs. Rich, sweet, and full-bodied on the palate. Intense red pepper finish. I prefer a less-sweet style of Gewurtztraminer.
2018 Chardonnay -- Grapes pressed and must clarified at low temperatures prior to fermentation in stainless steel tanks. Matured on lees for several months.
Sweet white flower, sweet white fruit on the nose. Perfumed, with apple, intense lime and savory herbs apparent. Full, round mouthfeel and a long finish. Robust. I love this Chardonnay.
2018 Schiava -- Temperature-controlled fermentation in stainless steel tanks with 6 days skin contact. Maturation in large oak casks.
Floral (violets), sweet red fruit, spice, licorice, and baking spices. Smooth and even from attack to finish. Expansive red fruit. Layers of salinity. Slate and ripe tamarind with a not-unpleasant bitter note. Burnt toffee and bitter cupric finish. Easy drinking. Unstructured.
2018 Elena Walch Merlot -- Fermentation for 10 days in stainless steel tanks. Malolactic fermentation in 80-hl French and Slavonian oak barrels followed by maturation in large oak barrels.
Dark fruit, chocolate, baking spices, richness, green herbs and red pepper on the nose. Lean, precise, bright with smooth, palate-coating tannins. Cocoa, spice, and red pepper. Pleasant drinking. Medium finish. Could have been more structured. Soft ending.
Ludwig 2017 Pinot Nero -- Maceration at low temperature for 48 hours followed by fermentation in large Slovenian oak vats and stainless steel tanks. Malolactic fermentation followed by 16 months aging in French oak barrels.
Charcoal, toasted barrel, ripe strawberry, tobacco, earth, baking spices, and burnt rubber on the nose. Tar, full-flavored, black pepper, faded cranberry, and a slatey character. Bright acidity. Flattened out. Bitter finish.
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The eight wines tasted herein represent a subset of the Elena Walch wines but I much prefer the whites to the reds. And the whites that I liked best were the varietal Sauvignon and Chardonnay. I am a Chardonnay lover (yeah, like an emergency worker, I run to the grape while others are running away) and love my Chardonnays unimpeded by the presence of other varietals.
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