Wow! This was an eye-eponer: Zahner Truttiker Stiefelhalder pinot noir 2007. A pleasant surprise (to me) to find that a wine grown just a few kilometers outside Zurich could be so beautiful. Amazing pure transparent pinot noir, delicate yet intense, fresh and crisp yet complex and silky, precise and focussed yet rewarding and flowing. Made without any barrique, alegedly; certainly free from any of the aromatic character of new oak, just the mellowing, harmonising benefits of aging in old wood perhaps. Not a flashy wine, but compelling, enthralling, fascinating to the end of the bottle. Proabably wouldn’t appeal to modernists; but a great example of showcasing nothing but the grape and the site. Grateful to the knowledgeable and fun Felix Christen for guiding us into this selection, and for excellent conversation while savouring it at the Widder. View high resolution

Wow! This was an eye-eponer: Zahner Truttiker Stiefelhalder pinot noir 2007. A pleasant surprise (to me) to find that a wine grown just a few kilometers outside Zurich could be so beautiful. Amazing pure transparent pinot noir, delicate yet intense, fresh and crisp yet complex and silky, precise and focussed yet rewarding and flowing. Made without any barrique, alegedly; certainly free from any of the aromatic character of new oak, just the mellowing, harmonising benefits of aging in old wood perhaps. Not a flashy wine, but compelling, enthralling, fascinating to the end of the bottle. Proabably wouldn’t appeal to modernists; but a great example of showcasing nothing but the grape and the site.

Grateful to the knowledgeable and fun Felix Christen for guiding us into this selection, and for excellent conversation while savouring it at the Widder.