Dönnhoff: Profile and top wines rated
Based in Oberhausen in the Nahe region of Germany, Dönnhoff is one of the country's leading lights when it comes to making great Riesling.
The estate owns 25ha of vines, including plots in nine Grosse Lage vineyards – the highest quality classification as set out by the VDP – including the monopole of Oberhäuser Brücke.
Today, the estate is run by fourth-generation Cornelius Dönnhoff, but it was his great-grandfather Hermann Dönnhoff who began selling single-vineyard expressions of Riesling from their best sites in the 1920s, and the family’s winemaking history can be traced back to the latter part of the 18th century.
Cornelius’ father Helmut had run the estate since the early 1970s, and is largely responsible for establishing the estate’s modern-day reputation and quality.
Style
Dönnhoff is renowned for its racy, elegant wines which can have a potent mineral character and plenty of tension.
The wines are whole-bunch pressed, with the drier styles fermenting naturally in cask before transferring to stainless steel and spending a handful of months on the lees. Botrytised grapes used for sweeter styles are fermented shortly after pressing with cultured yeasts, to avoid the grapes spoiling.
The Nahe region
Nahe has a wide diversity of soils, from slate and limestone to loam and sand. Located between the Rhine and Mosel valleys, most of the vineyards overlook the Nahe River. Riesling dominates, although many other varieties are grown in smaller quantities.
Top Dönnhoff wines as rated by Decanter’s experts:
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Dönnhoff, Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Riesling, Grosses Gewächs, Nahe, Germany, 2014
Nahe grower Dönnhoff would be in most people’s top 10 in German dry Riesling. The estate dates back to 1750. Helmut Dönnhoff has recently ceded...
2014
DönnhoffGrosses Gewächs
Dönnhoff, Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Riesling, Grosses Gewächs, Nahe, Germany, 2012
The very essence of minerality, from steep grey slate slopes with volcanic elements. Underlying the youthful complex of wild flowers, tart citrus and orange blossom...
2012
DönnhoffGrosses Gewächs
Dönnhoff, Felsenberg Felsentürmchen Riesling, Grosses Gewächs, Nahe, Germany, 2014
Located on the northern bank of the Nahe river, the volcanic soils of Felsenberg are rich in minerals, and the steep south-facing slope reaches angles...
2014
DönnhoffGrosses Gewächs
Dönnhoff, Oberhausener Brücke Riesling, Grosses Gewächs, Nahe, Germany, 2017
Cornelius Dönnhoff continues on the exact path his father Hermann took: utterly clean and precise Riesling is their mission. From this tiny 1.1ha parcel of...
2017
DönnhoffGrosses Gewächs
Dönnhoff, Oberhäuser Brücke Spätlese Riesling, Nahe, Germany, 2018
The 1.1ha vineyard of Brücke is a monopole of the estate. The vines are planted in loess loam soils over a slate bedrock, and its...
2018
Dönnhoff
Dönnhoff, Roxheimer Höllenpfad Trocken Riesling, Nahe, Germany, 2016
A harmonious and delightful Riesling with a fruit salad of peach, apricot and lemony intensity. It is slightly sappy, with a good dose of minerality...
2016
Dönnhoff
Dönnhoff, Felsenberg Felsentürmchen Riesling, Grosses Gewächs, Nahe, Germany, 2016
Attached to the village of Niederhausen in the region of Nahe, Felsenberg is a steep, south-facing vineyard on volcanic soils. The Riesling it produces here...
2016
DönnhoffGrosses Gewächs
Dönnhoff, Hermannshöhle Riesling, Grosses Gewächs, Nahe, Germany, 2016
Lovely lemon and tangerine freshness on the nose leads into a pristine, powerful and rich palate with masses of focussed pear and green apple fruit....
2016
DönnhoffGrosses Gewächs
Dönnhoff, Roxheimer Höllenpfad Trocken Riesling, Nahe, Germany, 2018
The steep red sandstone slopes of the Höllenpfad have produced a lovely wine here in spite of the drought-affected 2018 vintage. It has some grip...
2018
Dönnhoff
Dönnhoff, Oberhäuser Leistenberg Kabinett Riesling, Nahe, Germany, 2018
Grown on grey clay slate soils on a steep southeast-facing site, this has a fresh nose of green apple. In the mouth it has evident...
2018
Dönnhoff
Dönnhoff, Tonschiefer Riesling, Nahe, Germany, 2018
This is one of the most widely distributed wines of the Dönnhoff estate in the Nahe, and it showcases their pristine, clear-cut but expressive style...
2018
Dönnhoff
