We will let you in on a little secret - we rely heavily on relationships with our Importers, and Vom Boden is among the best. We can pass on SO much detail about the wine from their portfolio because they provide it to us in the first place. For instance, from Vom Boden we learn a lot about individual vineyards: Feils is the vineyard name of one of the three Grand Cru dry wines that Florian Lauer produces – the other two are Kupp and Schonfels. Note in German these are called “Grosses Gewächs,” translating to “great growth.” You should be able to find on the labels the letters “GG,” denoting the fact they are “Grand Cru” and dry.
Feils is a unique site for the Saar in a number of ways. It rests right up against the Saar River. Unlike the Mosel, where most of the great sites (at least historically speaking) cling to the river and benefit from the temperature control the river provides, in the Saar, most of the sites run perpendicular to the river. Which is to say, they are not so affected by the warmth the river generates. Because the river pushes up against and flows around the vineyard, the site has a good amount of alluvial soil, especially toward the bottom. Yes, there is slate here, but it is not the only soil type.
Feils is a warm site; it is also sneakily steep. The vineyard begins mildly as you walk through it heading down to the river. However, as one reaches center-slope the incline becomes quite severe. The lowest third of the vineyard is extremely steep.
The wine this site produces is one of the most textural and luscious of the GGs; from the beginning it can show a rather broad range of fruit and spice. It also tends to drink earlier than Lauer’s other GGs, though obviously this can change vintage to vintage.
