Terlaner Weißburgunder Alto Adige DOC 2013 Rarity

Cantina Terlan | South Tyrol
Kellerei Terlan | Silberleitenweg 7 | IT 39018 Terlan

01081513 · 0,75 l · 278,67 €/l · Price (DE) incl. VAT, excl. Shipping< 24 units available
Limitation of 3 articles per customer

There is one date worth remembering: 1967. In that year, former cellar master Sebastian Stocker placed the first white wines in pressure tanks that were actually intended for sparkling wine. There was no market for South Tyrolean sparkling wine, but there was an idea: what would happen if a white wine were left to age not for months, but for years – decades – on its fine lees? Stocker wanted to find out. His successors have refined the answer. Rudi Kofler, cellar master since 2002, has elevated it to a philosophy. The Rarity is the result of this patience. Outstanding vintages are first aged for twelve to fifteen months in large wooden barrels – then they are transferred to small 2,Liters, where they rest undisturbed on their fine lees: ten years, fifteen years, sometimes longer. Until Kofler decides that the time is right.

The 2013 vintage is 100% Pinot Blanc from the Vorberg, the winery’s cru vineyard, facing south-west, at an altitude of between 500 and 600 metres. Quartz-porphyry soils, subvolcanic subsoil, no calcium carbonate: the terroir that imbues the wine with its minerality long before the cellar master even begins his work. The wine spent more than eleven years sur lie on the fine lees before this bottle was filled.

In the glass, it is a brilliant gold with green highlights – surprisingly youthful for a wine that, for most white wines, would long since be past its prime. The nose unfolds in a multi-layered and complex manner: ripe pome fruit, beeswax, a hint of toasted almonds, herbs, and beneath it all, the saltiness of the porphyry soil. On the palate, it is powerful yet elegant – a tension between richness and freshness that no young wine can match. The final is extraordinarily long, salty and mineral, with a lingering aftertaste that lasts for minutes. What time can do to a white wine: that is the true message of the Terlan Rarity. SUPERIORE.DE

"Very young and full-bodied, it opens with an immediate creaminess, notes of breakfast pastries, crème fraîche and soft fruits, thanks to its ageing in stainless steel. The fruit notes include plenty of peach and melon, as well as tropical notes such as fresh mango. It is full-bodied, with a medium to full texture and great freshness. Allow this bottle a further five years’ ageing before popping the cork." Wine Advocate

"An absolutely unique experience that, despite its age, seems so youthful. Acacia blossoms, fennel leaves, red apples and smoked nuts unfold on the nose and on the honeyed, waxy palate. Fascinating notes of bitter almond lend the wine texture, whilst herbaceous notes provide a zesty touch." Decanter