Tscheppe Salamender, Weingut Andreas Tscheppe, Leutschach, Styria 2024

Weingut Andreas Tscheppe, Leutschach, Styria

Andreas and Elisabeth Tscheppe farm vines in the south of Styria near the border with Slovenia, and have been making wine since 2006. Their vines are growing using biodynamic principles (certified by Bio Garantie) on terraces. Tscheppe is one of a group of five producers working biodynamically in this pretty region, and I was introduced to these wines by Doug Wregg of Les Caves de Pyrene. Doug had just visited the region, and was full of enthusiasm for Tscheppe. ‘I’ve not seen a vineyard so full of life,’ he told me. It’s 500 m up, and full of wild herbs, grass and bare stones. In the cellar, fermentations are spontaneous and the wines spend a long time in old large oak without racking. Very little sulfur dioxide is used.

Very mineral with a matchstick nose. Intense and vivid with some spice. Textured pear and citrus palate is quite beautiful and intense. 

Grape: 100% Chardonnay (known as Morillon in the Styrian region)

Organic