Wine Advocate Reviews Dönnhoff 2020 Vintage - Scores up to 99 Points
ABS Wine Agencies, Mon 25 Oct 2021
Wine Advocate reviews written by Stephan Reinhardt for the Dönnhoff 2020 Vintage. Read the rest of the reviews on the Wine Advocate website here
2020 Dönnhoff Oberhäuser Brücke Riesling Eiswein
Rating: 99 Points
“Picked on November 30, the 2020 Oberhäuser Brücke Riesling Eiswein offers a concentrated yet fresh bouquet of very fine raisins, candied citrus fruit and crushed stones. Round and filigreed on the palate, this is a concentrated, sweet, piquant and crystalline ice wine with a fascinating, refined and concentrated, almost endless, in any case highly finessed and salty finish. Due to its clarity, finesse and elegance, the concentration and sweetness of the wine is really floating. Very long and intense. A gorgeous Brücke again.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2021 – 2100
2020 Dönnhoff Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Riesling Auslese
Rating: 98 Points
“The 2020 Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Riesling Auslese is another beauty of the domain that has probably bottled one of the finest vintages in history with the 2020s. The nose is pure, fresh and concentrated, with ripe fruit and very fine raisin and citric aromas that are intertwined with sugared grapefruit and crushed slate notes. Mouth-filling, round and delicate on the palate, this is a rich and concentrated yet filigreed and seemingly fragile Auslese that reveals a firm and sustainable mineral structure on the finish that stays on the palate for minutes. Another fantastic, persistently crystalline and salty Auslese from the Hermannshöhle. 8% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2021 – 2070
2020 Dönnhoff Hermannshöhle Riesling GG
Rating: 97 Points
“The Niederhäuser 2020 Hermannshöhle Riesling GG opens with a pure and fascinating mix of melting or crushed slate and ripe, concentrated white fruits. Vital and fresh on the palate, this is a racy, piquant and tensioned, almost irritatingly nervous but terroir-driven Riesling with stimulating salinity and a crystalline, very pure and challenging structure. 13% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2021 – 2060
2020 Dönnhoff Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Riesling Spätlese
Rating: 97 Points
“The 2020 Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Riesling Spätlese is magic. Pure, refined and aristocratic on the flinty, slate-dominated and slightly herbal nose that is populated by crushed stones and tiny mint leaves, while the bright fruit is perfectly interwoven with terroir-driven flavors. Racy, juicy-piquant and intense on the palate, this is a noble, highly elegant and complex Hermannshöhle with a long, intense and complex yet again very refined and floating finish. A genius of a Spätlese where everything is perfectly interwoven to an unspeakable beauty. "What is it that is so beautiful? That is the magic!," says Helmuth Dönnhoff, describing his philosophy of beauty. 8.5% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2025 - 2070
2020 Dönnhoff Oberhäuser Brücke Riesling Auslese
Rating: 97 Points
“The 2020 Oberhäuser Brücke Riesling Auslese is super clear, precise and coolish on the concentrated but highly refined and flinty/stony nose. Round and refined on the palate, this Auslese has a highly refined raisin tone intertwined with crunchy slate aromas. The wine comes across as a very complex and juicy but always highly finessed Auslese with eternal beauty. Almost zero botrytis, but the most perfect berries of the vintage made it into this adorable Auslese. 8% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2021 – 2070
2020 Dönnhoff Brücke Riesling GG
Rating: 96 Points
“The Oberhäuser 2020 Brücke Riesling GG is clear, ripe and intense on the nose, with wet stone and earthy aromas. Crystalline, intense and salty on the palate, this is a piquant Riesling with a lot of structure and length. Impressive like never before as a GG. 13% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2023 – 2050
2020 Dönnhoff Dellchen Riesling GG
Rating: 96 Points
“From slate and porphyry soils, the Norheim 2020 Dellchen Riesling GG is clear, pure, fresh and flinty on the nose that reveals a ripe and concentrated seed-fruit aroma. Full-bodied, intense and salty on the palate, this is a pure, rich, elegant and powerful but refined Dellchen with a long, intense and sustainable finish. A great wine that just needs some years to shine in full brightness. 13% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2026 – 2050
2020 Dönnhoff Oberhäuser Brücke Riesling Spätlese
Rating: 96 Points
“The 2020 Oberhäuser Brücke Riesling Spätlese is super clear, refined and fresh on the rather coolish but fruit-intense and elegant, slightly flinty nose. Salty-piquant and highly stimulating on the palate, this is a gorgeous, very elegant and juicy Riesling with a crystalline, laser-sharp acidity that is highly refined as well and carries this Spätlese to a long and intense finish. 8.5% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2021 – 2060
2020 Dönnhoff Felsenberg GG
Rating: 95 Points
“The 2020 Felsenberg GG is deep, intense and complex on the pure and elegant, well-defined and slightly flinty nose. Pure, intense and juicy on the palate, this is a crystalline, refined and salty Felsenberg with great terroir expression and length, even though the wine is still puristic or even ascetic in the finish. Not as charmingly fruity as Crusius’s interpretation but with the same length and tension. 13% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021 and again six weeks later in Wiesbaden during the GG tastings.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2026 - 2050
2020 Dönnhoff Norheimer Kirschheck Riesling Spätlese
Rating: 95 Points
“The 2020 Norheimer Kirschheck Riesling Spätlese is clear, pure and intense on the nose like a fine Italian perfume on wet, crushed stones. Lush and round on the palate, this is a dense yet very delicate and dangerously juicy and stimulating mineral Spätlese that is irresistible. Impossible to spit out. This long and salty Spätlese is singing. 8.5% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2021 – 2060
2020 Dönnhoff Chardonnay –S–
Rating: 94 Points
“Made for the first time and entirely sourced from vines about 50 years old that were picked after a green harvest in Bad Kreuznach's St Martin, the 2020 Chardonnay –S– was aged on the full lees (with discreet bâtonnage) in a single stück barrel until the bottling in June. The wine opens with an intensely aromatic but fine and elegant bouquet with finely flinty lemon but also pastry notes of iron-rich crushed stones. Crystalline, pure and juicy on the palate, this is a salty-piquant, enormously vital and bright, buoyant Chardonnay of remarkable class and style. This is where Chardonnay is kissed by Riesling. A fabulous firstling full of energy and mineral drive. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2024 – 2040
2020 Dönnhoff Höllenpfad Im Mühlenberg GG
Rating: 94 Points
“From 40+-year-old vines on weathered sandstone soils, the 2020 Höllenpfad Im Mühlenberg GG opens with a clear, fresh and elegant bouquet of ripe, bright fruits. Full-bodied, intense and mineral on the palate, this is a pure fresh, straight and fruity yet also complex and sustainable Riesling with a long and tensioned, clear and polishing finish with lingering salinity. The 2020 has a lot of expression but is still youthful and will gain complexity, finesse and elegance as it ages in the bottle. 13% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July and again six weeks later in Wiesbaden in August 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2025 – 2050
2020 Dönnhoff Niederhäuser Klamm Riesling Kabinett
Rating: 94 Points
“The 2020 Niederhäuser Klamm Riesling Kabinett is from volcanic soils and opens with a clear, pure and refined, coolish, spicy and stony bouquet with tropical fruit aromas (passion fruit) and crystalline, flinty tones. Round and lush on the palate, this is a crystalline, linear, intense and refreshing spicy Kabinett with a highly stimulating and juicy finish. A gorgeous Kabinett indeed. 9% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2021 – 2050
2020 Dönnhoff Roxheimer Höllenpfad Riesling trocken
Rating: 94 Points
“From an open, south-facing vineyard on red sandstone, the 2020 Roxheimer Höllenpfad Riesling trocken is pure but ripe and intense on the nose that reveals ripe and stewed apple aromas with a fine phenolic spiciness and reductive richness. Juicy-piquant and salty-crystalline on the palate, this is an intense yet very elegant and still slightly astringent dry Riesling with fine tannic grip and good tension. 12.5% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2025 – 2050
2020 Dönnhoff Schlossböckelheimer Riesling trocken
Rating: 94 Points
“From younger vines from the Felsenberg, the 2020 Schlossböckelheimer Riesling trocken offers an intense and aromatic, fruity yet fascinating pure terroir bouquet of wet stones, mocha, hazelnuts and herbs intertwined with ripe apricot and mirabelle aromas. Full-bodied, juicy-piquant and salty on the palate, this is a pure, refined and filigreed yet substantial dry Riesling with an enormously long and juicy finish. This is an impressive new entry into the Dönnhoff portfolio, and it is clearly a Felsenberg. 12% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2021 - 2050
2020 Dönnhoff Weissburgunder –S–
Rating: 94 Points
“Macerated for six to 12 hours and vinified in newer 1,200-liter barrels, the 2020 Weissburgunder –S– opens with a clear and complex, Burgundian bouquet that reveals intense and ripe fruit along with very fine oak and yeasty notes as well as spicy ones. Fermented with more lees than the standard Pinot Blanc, the S is pure, fresh and salty on the palate, very intense and elegant and with good tension and complexity on the finish. The 2020 is round and gastronomic and the finest I have tasted here. It will benefit from bottle aging (natural cork instead of screw cap).” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2023 – 2036
2020 Dönnhoff Krötenpfuhl GG
Rating: 93+ Points
“The Kreuznach 2020 Krötenpfuhl GG is from gravel-quartzite soils and opens with clear, fresh, ripe and elegant fruit on the nose. Round and juicy on the palate, this is a full-bodied, lush Riesling with fine phenolic grip on the salty-piquant finish. The 2020 is a long and substantial Riesling with ripe fruit expression and terroir-driven vitality. 13% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July and again at Wiesbaden’s GG tastings in August 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2025 – 2050
2020 Dönnhoff Grauburgunder –S–
Rating: 93 Points
“Picked about five to seven days later than the standard and entirely from Bad Kreuznach's Hinkelstein single vineyard, the 2020 Grauburgunder –S– opens very clear and fresh on the nose, with clear, ripe and refined white fruit. Pure, fresh and piquant on the palate, this is a full-bodied, dense yet vital and very elegant Pinot Gris with fine tannin grip and lingering salinity. 13.5% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2024 – 2035
2020 Dönnhoff Kreuznacher Kahlenberg Riesling trocken
Rating: 93 Points
“The 2020 Kreuznacher Kahlenberg Riesling trocken is from a steep vineyard on loess-loam soils with gravel and quartzite. Pure and fresh yet also fruity on the nose, with dusty lemon and wet earth and stone aromas, this is a medium-bodied, round and piquant dry Riesling with juicy fruit, fine grip, fine tannins and grapefruit bitters on the finish. 12.5% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2024 – 2050
2020 Dönnhoff Kreuznacher Krötenpfuhl Riesling Kabinett
Rating: 93 Points
“The 2020 Kreuznacher Krötenpfuhl Riesling Kabinett is bright and finely stony on the clear and elegant nose with its ripe, almost tropical fruit notes. Lush and round on the palate, this is a mouth-filling Kabinett with delicate acidity and a stimulatingly salty finish and very good length. A wine to keep. 9% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2025 – 2050
2020 Dönnhoff Oberhäuser Leistenberg Riesling Kabinett
Rating: 93 Points
“Dönnhoff's 2020 Oberhäuser Leistenberg Riesling Kabinett from a south-east facing site in the side valley of the Nahe opens with a very ripe, bright fruit aroma. The palate is round and lush as well as structured and driven by the fundamental minerality of this gorgeous Dönnhoff classic. 9% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2025 – 2050
2020 Dönnhoff Riesling Tonschiefer
Rating: 93 Points
“Predominantly from the Leistenberg plus first selections of the local crus, the 2020 Riesling Tonschiefer opens enormously pure and stony as well as citric on the earthy nose that is a terrific representative for the clayish slate terroir. Complex and juicy on the palate, this is a tensioned, finely reductive yet very intense and structured dry Riesling with fine phenolic grip and an expressive finish with salty-piquant and phenolic acidity. An impressive wine. 12% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2023 – 2050
2020 Dönnhoff Weissburgunder & Chardonnay Stückfass
Rating: 93 Points
“Entirely from the Roxheimer Höllenpfad's red sandstone soils, the 2020 Weissburgunder & Chardonnay Stückfass blends the grapes already on the press and was fermented less clear than the corresponding Weissburgunder & Grauburgunder. Fermented and aged in a 1,200-liter oval oak barrel until a day before bottling in May, the wine shows a clear, intense but also fresh bouquet of ripe fruit aromas intertwined with notes of wet sand and clay. Round and juicy on the palate, this is a full-bodied, tight and structured blend with finely racy and persistently salty acidity. The fruit is mouth-filling fleshy, fresh and very elegant, and the finish complex and persistently salty. Impressive wine. 12.5% alcohol.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2021 – 2030
2020 Dönnhoff Niederhäuser Riesling trocken
Rating: 92+ Points
“The 2020 Niederhäuser Riesling trocken is from younger, up to 10-year-old vines of the Hermannshöhle and opens with a chalky slate bouquet of refreshing lemon and ripe, elegant Riesling aromas. Juicy, refined and very elegant on the palate, this is a quite settled, ripe and lemon-bitter Riesling with fine tannins and a very good finish. The acidity is ripe and elegant and fully integrated and gives this flowing Riesling remarkable filigreed structure. 12% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2021 – 2040
2020 Dönnhoff Riesling
Rating: 92 Points
“Sourced in Oberhausen and Niederhausen (so from weathered slate and volcanic stones), the Dönnhoff estate 2020 Riesling is pure and refreshingly mineral on the nose that shows clear, bright and spicy fruit with crunchy slate aromas. Virtually a classic Kabinett, this is a round, only gently sweet Riesling with clear lemon fruit, a silky texture and very elegant, ripe and piquant acidity. This is a gorgeously fruity and stimulating Riesling to start with after a long night if you don't have fresh fruit on the table. "We have to be careful that it doesn't get too good for the price range," says Helmut Dönnhoff, and he is right, because this is a Nahe classic or, as Dönnhoff puts it, "This is the light, pure optimism, a children's choir. That is joie de vivre." 10.5% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2021 – 2040
2020 Dönnhoff Riesling Trocken
Rating: 92 Points
“Predominantly from the Oberhausen Kieselberg and Felsenberg, the 2020 Riesling Trocken opens with a clear, ripe, elegant and flinty bouquet of ripe Riesling fruit. Pure, linear and fresh on the palate, this is an intense and vital dry Riesling with stunning mineral expression, grip and salty length. A fabulous wine for small pockets. 11.5% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2021 – 2040
2020 Dönnhoff Weissburgunder & Grauburgunder Doppelstück
Rating: 92 Points
“From the Oberhäuser Felsenberg (porphyry, melaphyre), the 2020 Weissburgunder & Grauburgunder Doppelstück is blended with the grapes that are picked and pressed together. The bouquet is beautifully aromatic, fresh and coolish on the elegant and flinty nose. Pure and salty on the palate, this is a dense, quite complex and persistently salty and mineral cuvée with a tensioned and persistent finish. Impressive! 12.5% alcohol. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2021 – 2030
2020 Dönnhoff Grauburgunder Trocken
Rating: 90 Points
“Fermented and aged in doppelstücks (2,400-liter barrels) until the bottling In April, the 2020 Grauburgunder Trocken opens with an intense and aromatic yet also fine bouquet that is remarkably delicate, pure and precise on the nose. On the palate, this is more coolish, spicy, fresh and vital compared to the Pinot Blanc, quite filigreed and very elegant, with a good finish. Finely tannic on the finish and stimulatingly bitter. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2021 – 2031
2020 Dönnhoff Weissburgunder Trocken
Rating: 88 Points
“Vinified in large oak (doppelstück) and aged on the lees until the bottling in April, the 2020 Weissburgunder Trocken opens with a clear and aromatic bouquet of ripe and dried white fruits. The wine reveals fine acidity on the palate and stimulating grapefruit bitters on the finish and comes across as a round and fruity, elegant and medium-bodied Pinot Blanc for immediate drinking pleasure. Tasted at the domain in July 2021.” – Stephan Reinhardt. Drink Date: 2021 – 2026