Riesling returns to the sparkling wine house
The 2018 Riesling Sekt Brut is a dry vintage sparkling wine made entirely from Riesling, the first of its kind at Sekthaus Raumland after a five-year hiatus. Not a sparkling wine for the cellar, but one that wears its youth quite openly.
Riesling Sekt Brut 2018 is the traditional sparkling wine from the Raumland estate in Flörsheim-Dalsheim, crafted from 100 percent Riesling. The summer of 2018 heated up Rheinhessen like few others, which is why the hand-harvest began as early as August 29th. At this estate, Riesling stands alongside Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Meunier as the German counterpart.
Vineyard peach, green apple, and lime
The traditional sparkling wine is scented with white blossoms and yellow fruits, juicy vineyard peach and green apple, accompanied by citrusy notes of lime.
On the palate, it remains crisp, clear, and juicy, with a creaminess derived from 36 months on the lees. At 6.6 grams of acidity per liter, it is mild for a Riesling—a characteristic of the hot vintage—while 5 grams of residual sugar soften the final edges. The fine perlage supports the whole experience without overpowering it.
This makes it the most accessible Riesling sparkling wine at the estate and the one that requires the least explanation. Those who usually reach for Prosecco and want to know what traditional bottle fermentation can make of it will find the shortest path here.
With Asian cuisine and vegetables
Its uncomplicated freshness makes it the perfect sparkling wine for a long summer evening on the terrace and for the start of a meal.
Asian dishes suit it well, as do pan-seared poultry and herb-forward vegetarian cuisine. Marie-Luise Raumland does not believe sparkling wine is just for special occasions anyway, but something that has a place on any day of the week.
It shows best at 6 to 8 degrees Celsius in a white wine glass; any colder and it tends to remain closed. As an aperitif, it gets a gathering going without spoiling the appetite.
A vintage that ripened too soon
The Riesling grapes grow on a calcareous subsoil with loam and gravelly deposits and were harvested by hand on August 29, 2018.
Hardly anyone else harvests Riesling for sparkling wine this early, but the heat had pushed the sugar levels up and pulled the acidity down. The base wines were matured 100 percent in steel tanks to ensure the fruit remained the protagonist, followed by malolactic fermentation and the second fermentation in the bottle.
The family only produces a Riesling batch if the autumn has convinced them, as this variety keeps its own counsel and can turn out thin in weak years. Prior to 2018, there were five years without any Riesling sparkling wine from this estate.
Volker Raumland founded the estate in 1984, works organically on 14 hectares, and insists on at least 36 months of lees aging even for the most affordable sparkling wine in the assortment. A five-year wait for a single grape variety is a commitment a house must be willing to afford. The 2021 vintage shows how the same sparkling wine sounds from a cool year; alongside it are other sparkling wines from the house and everything sparkling from the selection.