Grower Website Weingut C.H. Berres Region:

The Berres family is recorded to have resided and worked in the vineyards of Ürzig since the year 1510. Markus Berres, 21st generation, has taken the helm of this prestigious Mittel Mosel estate beginning with the 2004 vintage, and is in the process of effecting one of the most significant renaissances in recent German wine history. Upon secularization of the Mosel by Napoleon, one of the first great private wine estates to be established was that of Peter Nicolay in Ürzig, including the finest sites in Ürzig, Erden, Wehlen, Graach and Zeltingen. Through marriage and inheritance Nicolay became C.H. (Carl Hubert) Berres, which continued to produce and market the estate’s great Rieslings under the Peter Nicolay brand until 1986, when the estate was divided upon inheritance. Carl Hubert’s grandson Alfred (father of Markus) retained nearly 10 acres of old, ungrafted Riesling vines in the best sites, including Ürzig’s famous Würzgarten and legendary, minuscule Goldwingert, and Erden’s Treppchen. While fine wines continued to be made in the original Berres/Nicolay cellars, sales were limited to the local trade, with significant accumulation of great 1990s vintages in the Berres cellars as a result. Ürzig and Erden are famous for their red slate soils and singular rock outcroppings that retain heat and concentrate the typical herb-spice of the wines. These are the only villages in the Mosel allowed to replant without grafting, as phylloxera was never able to penetrate the rock barriers. Following graduation from the Geisenheim Institute and experience in the New Zealand wine industry, Markus Berres has approached the 2004 vintage looking enthusiastically to the future, introducing thoroughly modern and intense Rieslings with Stelvin screw cap closures on all bottlings. As a remarkably affordable introduction, Markus has christened his new Estate Riesling from top sites Impulse–symbolic of the renewed energy and optimism at this proud estate.