Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
When I say that the nose of lemon curd, ripe star fruit and fresh pineapple leaps out at you it could make it sound as if this wine is loud, but that’s not true. It is simply strong. Rich, concentrated and precisely proportioned, this great dry pinot blanc has the depth of Grand Cru Burgundy without the oak or extravagance that often goes with it. Long and imposing chalky finish.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
From hard Muschelkalk limestone soils and vinified in stainless steel until July of the following year, Rebholz's 2021 Im Sonnenschein Weisser Burgunder GG offers a pure, precise and flinty, lemon-scented nose with perfectly ripe and precise white fruit aromas. Very fine and elegant on the palate, this is a round and juicy, very intense but stimulating, savory and saline Pinot Blanc with fine tannins and serious mineral grip and tension on the long and aromatic finish. This is another superb Im Sonnenschein of the 2021 vintage. This comes from 30-year-old vines whose destemmed grapes were basket-pressed for eight to ten hours.
Approachable, aromatic and pleasantly plush on the palate, Pinot Blanc is a white grape variety most associated with the Alsace region of France. Although its heritage is Burgundian, today it is rarely found there and instead thrives throughout central Europe, namely Germany and Austria, where it is known as Weissburgunder and Alto Adige where it is called Pinot Bianco. Interestingly, Pinot Blanc was born out of a mutation of the pink-skinned Pinot Gris. Somm Secret—Chardonnay fans looking to try something new would benefit from giving Pinot Blanc a try.
This sunny and relatively dry region served for many years as a German tourist mecca and was associated with low cost, cheerful wines. But since the 1980s, it has gained a reputation as one of Germany’s more innovative regions, which has led to increased international demand.