Blanc de Blancs Tradition Brut – 2022

Blanc de Blancs Tradition Brut from Griesel Sekt: creamy and chalky

The 2022 Blanc de Blancs Tradition Brut from Griesel Sekt is a sparkling wine made from Chardonnay and Pinot Blanc, matured in four different types of vessels and aged on fine lees for twenty months. With a dosage of 3 grams per liter, it remains at the lower end of what is permitted for Brut.

Blanc de Blancs Tradition Brut 2022 is the white two-varietal sparkling wine from Griesel Sekt in Bensheim, located on the Hessian Bergstraße. The name refers to a bottle containing exclusively light-skinned grapes—in this case, two varieties used side-by-side, each with its own role.

Two light varieties with distinct roles

Chardonnay provides the acidic drive and structure, while Pinot Blanc adds calmness and breadth. Both originate from the same slopes, yet they do not speak with the same voice in the glass. Only together do they create a sparkling wine that is neither sharp nor round, but maintains both qualities simultaneously.

They grow on the Bergstraße in permeable soil, whose decomposed granite gives it a leanness that forces the vines to root deeply, allowing the grapes to retain their acidity. They were harvested by hand in September 2022 and then pressed so gently that only about half of the juice is extracted.

Eight percent of base wine from previous vintages is added. This gives the 2022 vintage a depth that it could not achieve on its own, as a single year can only ever reflect a single year.

Applesauce and almond blossom over fresh brioche

Juicy pear and applesauce are at the forefront, followed by notes of almond kernel and almond blossom, and finally, a layer of fresh brioche. If you let the glass sit for a moment, the almond note becomes more apparent.

On the palate, the first thing one notices is the perlage; it is so finely structured that it softens the mouthfeel, while the acidity beneath it remains direct. In between, a tart trace emerges, somewhere between matcha and young garden herbs. The finish leaves behind a chalky minerality—bright, tart, and dry.

Steamed arctic char calls for exactly this type of accompaniment, as does roasted cauliflower, and a bowl of North Sea shrimp provides a saltiness that the wine answers with its own minerality. Because it lacks sweetness, it does not become heavy, even towards the end of the bottle.

Four vessels for an entry-level sparkling wine

The base wines undergo spontaneous fermentation and malolactic fermentation, which converts sharp malic acid into milder lactic acid. Without this, the sparkling wine would remain harsher than its grape varieties require. This is precisely the source of the creaminess that becomes noticeable later in the mouth.

For the maturation process, Rachele Crosara distributes the wines into four types of vessels: a good four-tenths remain in stainless steel, one-fifth goes into barriques, one-fifth into large wooden casks (Stückfass), and the rest into tonneaux. A Stückfass holds about 1,200 liters, which is why its wood influence is barely detectable, serving primarily to allow air to reach the wine.

On July 21, 2023, the base wine was bottled along with the liqueur de tirage to initiate the second fermentation. Nothing was clarified or fined beforehand. Griesel Sekt insists on twenty months of lees aging even for the Tradition line, whereas nine months is the minimum requirement for German Winzersekt.

It was disgorged after this period, and the wine has been on the shelf since March 2025. Alongside it, you will find the Riesling Tradition and the Rosé Tradition from the same vintage, and other bottle-fermented wines from the estate can be found under Sparkling Wines.