Dornfelder - Germany’s great red hope?

The “RARE GRAPE” series continues…

This might come as a shock to some of you, but Germany does make red wines - granted they are few and far between, but regions like Baden,and the Pfalz in the southwest, and the Ahr further north and east are just as well known for their red wines as their whites. The more southerly climes and more hours of sun in these regions allow growers to cultivate traditional, uncrossed red grape varieties like Lemberger (a.k.a. Blaufrankisch) and Spatburgunder (the German name for Pinot Noir - yes, Germany makes Pinot Noir, and some pretty damned good ones at that), but the problem even in these warmer regions is consistency. Though global warming may make this phenomenon a thing of the past, German red wine makers always had difficulty fully ripening their red varieties with any real consistency. Certain particularly hot years could yield wines with enough color, weight, and alcohol to make them universally appealing, but all too often when Mother Nature caught a little cold, the results were often thin, pale, and pinched - wines that were more like roses than reds, and were consumed locally for reasons more having to do with local pride than for the ultimate quality of the wines.

And then there’s Dornfelder (sounds like the title of a scrapped Woody Allen movie script, no?). As I alluded to above, Dornfelder is not a “natural” variety. Dornfelder was born in Germany only in 1956 to a single (agronomist) parent named August Herold who crossed two other hybridized varieties, one called Helfensteiner, and the other called Heroldrebe (Herold’s “child” as well as the name clearly illustrates). But despite all the good efforts of dedicated scientists, hybrid grape varieties tend to be ultimately underwhelming. They nearly always display the storied “hybrid vigor” that crossed varieties often possess, and in fact, this is often the primary reason for their existence in the first place, but no matter how carefully this or that charteristic is selected for, the final result is quite unpredictable, so many crossed varieties exist nowhere else than in a genetics bank. No grower that doesn’t have to deal with crossed varieties does so willingly, but historically, Germany’s only chance to make red wine was via this route.

All that being said, and though not perfect, Dornfelder stands out as one of the most succesful modern crossings. First, Dornfelder yields very deeply colored juice even in cooler vintages. This is a big plus for for a place whose reds can perhaps best be described as a bit wan. The second plus to Dornfelder are yields. Also due to the often chilly German climate, those that make wines from uncrossed Vitis Vinifera vines can’t make very much wine - the place’s climate just naturally reduces yields. No such problems with Dornfelder - harvests are bountiful. Third, Dornfelder ripens quite early, so any chances of getting burned by an early frost are dramtically reduced. Finally, true to its crossed roots, Dornfelder is indeed highly resistant to most of the major vine diseases.

So what’s it like in the glass? As already stated, Dornfelder wines are deeply colored - often a sultry, purply garnet color. The wines always show a fresh acidity, and also react quite well to moderate amounts of wood aging that can add another level to the wines. Flavor/aroma-wise, Dorfelder is often said to possess a velvety “sweet” texture with flavors of exotic spice, berries, and a violet-y florality. If I had to make a specific comparison to another, traditional wine, I’d say Dornfelder most resembles one of the big cru Beaujolaises like Morgon or Moulin-a-Vent.

As might be inferred from the similarities to serious Beaujolais, Dornfelder wines pair well with dry salamis and hams, as well as grilled fresh sausages, chicken, and rabbit, and soft-ripened cow’s milk cheeses as well as herbed goat cheeses.

Below is a link to the two Dornfelder wines we’re currently stocking. As always, if you pick up one of these, or any other from elsewhere, please post your tasting notes here.

TOM CIOCCO

DR DORNFELDER, PLEASE REPORT TO THE DINNER TABLE - DR DORNFELDER