Weingut Riehen was formerly known as Jost & Ziereisen; All wines purchased upon release, many purchased importer-direct, and all stored in a purpose built redundant temperature and humidity controlled cellar.

The 2018 Weingut Riehen "Le Grand" Pinot Noir is the absolute flagship, "Grand Cru" equivalent red wine from this highly acclaimed estate in the Basel-Stadt canton of Switzerland. In the stellar 2018 vintage, this wine carries special collectors' status: it was vinified directly by German winemaking icon Hanspeter Ziereisen, who personally oversaw the estate during a transitional ownership phase. It is a massive, multi-layered Swiss Pinot Noir built for serious longevity.

• Origin: Schlipf vineyard slopes, Riehen, Basel-Stadt, Switzerland (positioned right on the literal border facing Germany).
• Grape Variety: 100% Pinot Noir.
• Vinification: Strict vineyard sorting and low yields. Spontaneously fermented with wild native yeasts using a low-intervention philosophy.
• Maturation: Aged for 18 months in small French oak barriques to sculpt its dense structural frame. It is bottled entirely unfined and unfiltered.
• Composition: 13.5% Alcohol by Volume (ABV).

• Aroma: A deep, brooding nose that balances dark cherries, elderberries, and plum marmalade against savory undertones of malt, tobacco, liquorice, and a delicate kiss of sweet oak spice.
• Palate: Full-bodied, polished, and surprisingly muscular. It delivers a powerful concentration of tart dark berries and black fruits, heavily supported by tight, chalky-fine structural tannins and a chiseled alpine acidity.
• Finish: Powerfully long, firm, and animatingly dry, leaving behind a persistent trail of dark chocolate, white pepper, and a stark mineral-saline edge.

• Current Window: 2024 to 2032+. Because 2018 was a warmer, deeply structured vintage, the wine is currently entering its ideal prime drinking window but possesses the dense tannic spine to cellar beautifully for another decade.
• Decanting Time: 2+ Hours. As the estate's top-tier "Grand" bottling, it is tightly wound out of the bottle. Decanting is essential to allow the tight, chalky tannins to settle and reveal the wine’s complex mineral depths.

95 Falstaff

Highly praised for its exceptional elegance. The panel noted its beautiful aromatic profile of ripe cherries and wild dark berries, complexed by premium wood and a chalky, mineral core.

91+ Wein.Plus 

Classified it as a "firm and deep, multi-layered" wine with noble fruit, tight tannins, and an undeveloped complexity of chalk, salt, and ethereal mountain notes.