Frank John Brut Riesling-36- 2020

Frank John Riesling Brut -36- is a white sparkling wine produced by Weingut Frank John using the Riesling variety from its vineyards in Pfalz, Germany.This Riesling Sekt is the result of a highly precise artisanal approach: whole-cluster pressing, ageing in large traditional Palatinate foudres and a second fermentation in bottle, followed by 36 months on the lees. The result is a German sparkling wine of remarkable purity, certified organic/biodynamic, which showcases Riesling’s ability to deliver fine bubbles, mineral tension and aromatic depth.On the nose, it displays a fresh, vertical expression, with notes of yellow apple, peach, citrus fruit, fine herbs, white flowers and a subtle hint of brioche. On the palate, it stands out for its very fine mousse, lively acidity, dry profile and saline sensation, with a creamy, precise and long finish. This is an elegant, highly gastronomic sparkling wine, closer in ambition to the great traditional-method wines than to a simple aperitif.Best served between 8 and 9 ºC, it works beautifully as a refined aperitif, but also pairs extremely well with fish, Asian cuisine, white veal, mature cheeses and Mediterranean-inspired dishes. Its tension, purity and depth make it a very serious benchmark within the new generation of high-quality German Sekt. Frank John met his wife Gerlinde while studying at university, where she was studying agricultural biology and he was studying agricultural engineering with a focus on viticulture, soil study, plant nutrition and microbiology. Years later, they found a way to put their love of nature into practice in the Palatinate by making wine in a way that respects nature and the environment, and they moved there in 2003 with their children Dorothea and Sebastián to found the winery. Frank already knew the area because his grandmother owned the farm from which he supplied products to the restaurant where he worked as chef.At Frank John, they began working in biodynamics from the beginning with a vision, that of making traditional wines in an artisanal way, with full attention to detail, which includes soil in perfect microbiological condition and in balance with nature. For this purpose, they produce wines of great finesse, with an intense and tasty profile but with a mineral delicacy. For them, this means working in biodynamics (certified since 2012), being very rigorous with the selection and a lot of patience in the cellar, so that the wines find their maturity and balance without the pressure of getting them to market quickly. The winery is certified as Carbon Neutral since 2021.Proof of the draconian nature of their style was the disaster they faced in 2006 when a tropical night ruined all their year's work. When they were planning the harvest for the following morning the previous afternoon, they did not suspect that that night at the end of September the thermometer would reach 25ºC and that it would be followed by torrential rain that made the clusters fatten and burst, ruining a harvest that was expected to be fantastic. The Johns decided to sell the grape and not make wine that year. Quality ahead of everything.Helped by their children DOrothea and Sebastian, today part of the winery, they grow biodynamically, harvest by hand, let the wines ferment spontaneously (both alcoholic and malolactic), age the wines in foudres for longer than usual and they add a minimal amount of sulfur just before bottling, using quality corks and letting the wines rest in the bottle in the cellar before releasing them to the market.