Spatburgunder
⏳ Drinking Window
2021 - 2026
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Roasted duck, wild mushroom risotto, roasted pork tenderloin
✨ Technical Specifications
Weingut Bernhart's Spätburgunder is a beautiful testament to the unique cross-border terroir of Schweigen-Rechtenbach, situated right on the boundary between the German Pfalz and French Alsace. Here, the vines dig deep into the historic, limestone-rich Kalkmergel (calcareous marl) soils, which have been cultivated since medieval times when Cistercian monks recognized the region's exceptional potential for Pinot Noir. Bernhart's approach to Spätburgunder combines traditional German craftsmanship with a distinctly French, Burgundian elegance. The grapes are hand-harvested, gently fermented, and aged in traditional oak casks and barriques. This results in a wine defined by its bright red berry fruit, subtle earthy undertones, fine-grained tannins, and a vibrant, mineral-driven acidity that reflects the cool-climate borderlands.
🍾 About the Producer
Weingut Bernhart is situated in Schweigen-Rechtenbach along the southernmost fringe of the Pfalz, right at the French frontier near the historic Deutsches Weintor. While the family's agricultural roots date back centuries, estate bottling commenced under Willi and Wilma Bernhart in 1971, followed by their accession to the VDP in 2004 and formal organic certification in 2012. Today led by Gerd and Sabine Bernhart, the estate commands a singular cross-border terroir: approximately two-thirds of its roughly 20 hectares of vineyards are technically situated on French soil in Alsace, governed by special bilateral treaties that allow the wines to bear German designations. The viticultural backbone rests on dense, fossil-rich limestone, calcareous marl, and clay deposits across benchmark cru plots such as the Schweigener Sonnenberg. Winemaking emphasizes spontaneous fermentation, lees contact, and judicious wood aging, generating deeply structured, mineral-driven white and red expressions epitomized by their Kalkmergel and Grosses Gewächs bottlings.
🍇 Grapes
Spätburgunder
🍷 ABV
12.5-13.5%