Viognier – 2023

Viognier by Oliver Zeter from Palatinate wooden barrels

Viognier by Oliver Zeter is an opulent, creamy white wine from the Palatinate region, whose grapes are harvested in small crates and sorted by hand. The must ferments spontaneously along with its lees in wooden barrels, resulting in a wine with great depth.

Viognier 2023 is a dry Palatinate white wine from Oliver Zeter, made from grapes harvested as late as the weather and the condition of the berries allowed. With 13.5% vol, it shows plenty of richness, distinct fruit sweetness, and fine, warm toasted notes from the wood.

Opulent fruit and warm toasted aromas

In the glass, the Viognier by Oliver Zeter shows its opulent side, as it is fragrant with ripe yellow plums and roses and brings fine toasted aromas from the wooden barrel. On the tongue, it is enormously rich in flavor. Its fruit sweetness feels lush, even though it is fully fermented and dry.

This opulence is typical of Viognier, a grape variety that originally comes from the Rhône and is often reminiscent of stone fruit and blossoms. It is still barely grown in Germany today, which makes every bottle a small discovery. If you like white wines with depth and creaminess, you will find in it a wine that can carry an entire meal.

Small crates, wild yeasts, and a long time on the lees

For the harvest, the grapes are placed in small crates of 20 kilos each, in which they remain intact on the way to the cellar. There, they are sorted once again by hand, and only flawless, ripe grapes continue on to the press.

After crushing and pressing, the fine lees floating in the must are deliberately left in the barrel. They later give the wine creaminess and depth. The yeasts from the vineyard and cellar start the fermentation by themselves, so it proceeds slowly and at its own pace. This natural process takes longer than fermentation with pure cultured yeasts, but it often gives the wine a unique, multi-layered character.

After a long period on the lees until the summer, the wine is bottled unfined before autumn. This unhurried approach gives the Viognier by Oliver Zeter time to develop its complexity, and the wooden barrel provides a fine, warm framework.

Zander, coconut curry, and ripe soft cheese

A zander fillet pan-seared skin-on with beurre blanc is an obvious partner because the butter sauce picks up on the wine's creamy nature. A mild yellow curry with coconut milk and shrimp pairs well with its fruit sweetness. To finish, a ripe soft-ripened cheese is a great match for the wine's creaminess.

Between 10 and 12 degrees, its fragrance and richness are particularly clear, so the bottle should be taken out of the refrigerator a few minutes before pouring. This makes the first glass a rounded start to a long evening at the table.

The following vintage is available in our assortment as Viognier 2024. The Sauvignon Blanc Fumé 2024 shows a different variation of wood-aged white wine, and further white wines can be found in the white wine category.

Viognier 2023 – a white wine and its technical data

• Origin Germany
• Region Palatinate
• Oliver Zeter, Neustadt an der Weinstraße
• Grape variety Viognier
• Aged in wooden barrels
• 13.5% vol alcohol
• 0.2 g/l residual sugar
• 4.8 g/l acidity