Hanno and Dorothee Zilliken are Winemaker of the Year (Gault Millau WeinGuide Deutschland 2017). In addition, Weingut Forstmeister Geltz-Zilliken was promoted from 4/5 to 5/5 grapes in the Gault Millau WeinGuide Deutschland 2017 and is now one of 13 wine producers in Germany with 5 grapes in the Gault Millau.
Hanno Zilliken is a living legend in the Saar. Taking over the estate with the baroque, botrytis-inflected 1976 vintage, the wines of Zilliken have epitomized the lightness and elegance of Saar Riesling for well over 30 years. There are many who feel the 2005 vintage marked Hanno’s crowning achievement; this is a legendary collection. Yet, the best of Zilliken may still be to come; Hanno’s daughter, Dorothee, has been working with her father since 2007 and is in a great position to continue the estate.
Joel B. Payne: An impressive cellar with nearly 100 percent humidity, perfectly maintained wooden barrels, in which the most brilliant of all Saar wines are made. Hanno Zilliken, assisted by his daughter Dorothee, produces sleek, radiantly clear Rieslings from the wines in the liter bottle to his noble sweet gems. His wines are truly timeless, far from any fashion!
Weingut Forstmeister Geltz-Zilliken is one of Germany’s leading producer of fruity-sweet and noble-sweet wines. The estate enjoys cult status in some circles, including with some of my wine friends in the Washington DC area.
Weingut Forstmeister Geltz-Zilliken
The Zilliken family traces its winegrowing tradition back to 1742. Royal Prussian Forest Superintendent Ferdinand Geltz (1985 –1925) however laid the groundwork for what would become one of the grandest family-owned estates in the Mosel appellation. He was also co-founder of the Association of Elite Wine Estates (VDP). Today Hanno Zilliken and daughter Dorothee, both gifted winemakers run the estate with Hanno’s wife Ruth overseeing sales. The 27 acres of vineyard are planted with 100% Riesling. For generations the family owns parcels in the famous Saarburger Rausch, a spectacular steep site with unique climatic conditions. The wines are very slowly fermented in aged wooden casks in the deepest cellar in the Saar valley – three stories beneath the earth’s surface with humidity and cool temperatures of around 11 degrees Celsius. The bottled Rieslings are stored here too, sometimes for decades. I quote the Zillikens: “Our wines are intended to mature. Many wines take decades to mature.”
Weingut Geltz-Zilliken produces 100% Riesling wines, of which about 80% is fermented in a sweet style. 70% of the production is exported. In the US, Weingut Geltz-Zilliken has been in the portfolio of Rudi Wiest Selection for a long time.
Riesling from New York to Tokyo
Dorothee Zilliken: From uncomplicated and fresh estate wines to elegant bottles destined to accompany fine meals and sweet, late harvest wines that will only begin to mature and develop ten years after harvest, Zilliken Rieslings are beloved by aficionados from New York to Tokyo. Wine critics proclaim: Geltz Zilliken's wines are a perpetual player in the international Champion's League of wine. Put simply, they are among the finest Rieslings the world has to offer.
We aren't influenced by international trends and styles (except perhaps by a name like 'Butterfly'). We instead focus on timeless tradition, beginning with our labels, the same as those our grandfather placed on his bottles. There are no compromises when it comes to quality; we do things as they have always been done. Our dry Rieslings stand proudly in our portfolio, shoulder to shoulder with their better-known noble sweet counterparts — Auslese, Trockenbeeren-Auslese and Eiswein. The best of these wines will be sent to auction.
History
Weingut Geltz-Zilliken is located in the Saar Valley, which belongs to the Mosel district, very close to France and Luxembourg. Weingut Geltz-Zilliken is a founding member of the VDP, the association of German elite winemakers.
As early as 1742, or 270 years ago, records show that the ancestors of the Zilliken family were active as wine producers in both Saarburg and Ockfen. The initial status and reputation of the estate’s wines were primarily the work of the Royal Prussian District Forester, Ferdinand Geltz (1851-1925).
In 1976 Hanno Zilliken and his father succeeded in restoring the original estate to its former size after it had previously been partitioned through inheritances. Hanno Zilliken started in 1976 as cellar master and took ownership in 1981.
In 2007, his oldest daughter, Dorothee Zilliken, who led the winetasting in Frankfurt am Main, joined the estate after completing her studies at Geisenheim University and a two year stint at Schloss Vollrads in the Rheingau. Dorothee is married to Philipp Zilliken (nee Hoffmann), who is a career changer and recently started to work at the estate.
Vineyard
With a vineyard area of 11 hectares, Weingut Geltz-Zilliken is a small estate. It is a family-run estate, with only 2 full-time employees and seasonal workers for the harvest. All grapes are sourced from its two VDP.Grosse Lage vineyards: Saarburger Rausch and Ockfener Bockstein, including for its popular “Butterfly” wine.
Saarburger Rausch - Thinly layered slate, very gravelly with basalt rock, (Diabas), and veins of reddish earth. The Rieslings from the Rausch exhibit an interesting, subtle, dusty gout de terroir along with citrus, lemon balm and flint.
Ockfener Bockstein - Grey slate, sandstone laced with quartzite, gravelly, and intermittent yellow earth. Bockstein Rieslings are more steely and straight ahead but also apples, pears and citrus.
Wine Cellar
The Weingut Forstmeister Geltz-Zilliken wine cellar is very special. I have heard this from many sources and Dorothee talked quite a bit about the cellar: We have a very old cellar. It's 100 years old and it's very dark, humid and cold. The humidity is always between 95% and 99% so it very high and looks like a cave that is always dropping. It's very good for our corks. When we close the cork it stays very soft and gentle which is perfect for the storage conditions. Especially for the normal sweet wines we can store them for: 30, 40 or 50 years in our cork cellar without recorking them. So these corks will always stay in the bottle which is perfect.
We are fermenting all our wines in our German oak barrels and not those stainless steel tanks but small barrels. The content is about 1000 liters and is toasted inside giving a flavor vanilla aroma to the wine. These German barrels are none toasted so they are neutral and not giving any flavors. However, we think that it's worth to work with these German barrels because they are rounding the wine a bit and gives the wine more harmony. From the working point of view, it would be much easier to have these tank steel barrels but we will then miss more taste in the mouth.
Riesling
Weingut Geltz-Zilliken is a 100% Riesling producer. Dorothee Zilliken: We are just producing the Riesling grape variety. We think it's more worth to produce it there because we have a Devonian Slate terroir, which is the best condition for growing Riesling. We have very steep mountains vineyards that are between 30 and 60 degrees of steepness. We are only harvesting by hand which is very important for us because then you can safe all the quality of the grapes. Because if you are taking the housing machine and run through the vineyard lines it will also be catching as for example a lot of leaves and the pressure on the grapes is too high. This is the reason why we are only harvesting by hand.
US Importer Rudi Wiest on Weingut Forstmeister Geltz-Zilliken
As early as 1742, or 270 years ago, records show that the ancestors of the Zilliken family were active as wine producers in both Saarburg and Ockfen. The initial status and reputation of the estate’s wines were primarily the work of the Royal Prussian District Forester, Ferdinand Geltz (1851-1925). As an affirmation of his achievements, the estate still carries his name. In 1976 Hanno Zilliken and his father succeeded in restoring the original estate to its former size after it had previously been partitioned through inheritances. Hanno started on in 1976 as cellarmaster and took ownership in 1981. In 2007, his oldest daughter, Dorothee joined the estate after completing her studies at Geisenheim and a two year stint at Schloss Vollrad in the Rheingau.
The estate has one of the most unique cellars anywhere. It is three levels below ground and the deepest cellar in the Saar. It offers an unparalleled environment with near 100% humidity and a constant cool temperature of about 48°F. It is here that the wines are fermented and matured in German oak (neutral) 1,000 liter barrels also known as Fuders. This cool, damp environment provides optimal conditions to produce Rieslings with great aging potential. Quintessential Saar Rieslings! For example, top wines from the great 1983 vintage are still timelessly fresh.
The estate owns 11 ha of great Saar vineyards, planted 100% to Riesling and produces about 7,000 cs a year. The following Grand Cru vineyards are instrumental for the greatness of the estate:
Saarburger Rausch- Thinly layered slate, very gravelly with basalt rock, (Diabas), and veins of reddish earth. The Rieslings from the Rausch exhibit an interesting, subtle, dusty gout de terroir along with citrus, lemon balm and flint.
Ockfener Bockstein- Grey slate, sandstone laced with quartzite, gravelly, and intermittent yellow earth. Bockstein Rieslings are more steely and straight ahead but also apples, pears and citrus.
The Zilliken Estate was a founding member of the Mosel VDP.
Previous Years' Gault Millau WeinGuide Deutschland Winemakers of the Year
Here is a list of the Gault Millau WeinGuide Deutschland Winemakers of the Year of previous years:
Peter Jakob Kühn, Weingut Kühn, see: Germany’s Best Winemakers and Wines – Gault Millau WeinGuide Deutschland 2016 Awards: The Awards Ceremony in Mainz, Germany
Thomas Haag, Weingut Schloss Lieser, Germany’s Winemaker of the Year, Gault Millau WeinGuide Deutschland 2015
Phlipp Wittmann, Weingut Wittmann, see: Best German Wines and Winemakers: Gault Millau Awards – Gault Millau WeinGuide Deutschland 2014
Joachim Heger, Weingut Dr. Heger, see: Best German Wines and Wine Makers – the Gault Millau WeinGuide Deutschland 2013 Awards
Matthias Müller, Weingut Matthias Müller, see: 2012: Best German Wines (Awards) – Gault Millau WeinGuide Deutschland 2012
Johannes Leitz, Weingut Leitz, see: Gault Millau WeinGuide Germany 2011– Ratings
Tim Fröhlich, Weingut Schäfer Fröhlich, see: Gault Millau Wine Germany 2010
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