“OUR ‘OLD VINES’ ARE APPROX. 100 YEARS OLD.”
ALEXANDER STODDEN SPEAKS ABOUT HIS WINES AND HIS RED WINE ESTATE IN RECH IN THE AHR VALLEY
Office Hours
Mo-Fr 9.00-12.00, 13.30-17.30 Sa 10.00-13.00 Mittwochnachmittag geschlossenOwner
Alexander Stodden
Cellarmaster
Alexander Stodden
Member Since
2005
Wine Area
9,00 acres
Grape Variety
90% Spätburgunder, 6% Frühburgunder, 4% Riesling
Geology
Schieferverwitterungsboden mit Grauwacke
Growing Areas
VDP: What is so special about your wine estate?
Alexander Stodden: I think it's the vintner that makes a wine estate special. Remarkable is certainly our new, modern wine shop and tasting room. It has a puristic design where red is a supporting element -– thus the colour is not only expressed in our wine. Our winery has grown continuously over several generations and also evolved in regard to the demands of all those who appreciate and love our wines. Our "Alte Reben" (old vines) are about 100 years old, ungrafted and therefore grow on their own roots – a real rarity in the vineyards of the Ahr!
VDP: What is your winery philosophy?
Alexander Stodden: To do everything in harmony with nature to bring wine to perfection.
VDP:What wine style do you aim for?
Alexander Stodden: I want to make the perfect Spätburgunder (Pinot Noir) from the Ahr.
VDP: Do you have a favourite grape variety?
Alexander Stodden: My heart throbs for Spätburgunder (Pinot Noir). We no longer plant anything else in our vineyards.
VDP: Which of your wines would you recommend to someone who does not yet know your winery – as an introduction, so to speak?
Alexander Stodden: The Spätburgunder JS is a good representative of our estate. It is the entry into the barrique category and a gallant Pinot Noir from our steep slopes, which offers early drinking pleasure at a young age.
VDP: Which wine are you particularly proud of?
Alexander Stodden: I’m proud of them all! Ask a mother or father about their favourite child...
“I THINK IT'S THE VINTNER THAT MAKES A WINE ESTATE SPECIAL.”
VDP: Why did you become a vintner?
Alexander Stodden: I was born a vintner. I never considered anything else. And today I still can't imagine anything else. To be a vintner is my life’s passion.
VDP: Do you have role models?
Alexander Stodden: Certainly! The great winegrowers of Burgundy.
VDP:What are your next goals?
Alexander Stodden: To get a little better each year. There's always room to improve.
Spätburgunder
VDP.GUTSWEIN
VDP: How do you combine tradition and innovation?
Alexander Stodden: For us, tradition means always working conscientiously and correctly. Innovation means never losing sight of the fact that there is always progress and deciding at the right moment what and how this is suitable for our winery.
© 2022
Photos: Peter Bender