Thursday, July 26, 2012

"A Clockwork Orange" by Stanley Kubrik, 2009 Weisses Rauschen by "Die Toten Hosen" and the Rieslings and the Rock and Roll Music of Winemaker Martin Tesch, Germany

Pictures: A Clockwork Orange by Stanley Kubrik, Die Toten Hosen and Martin Tesch and Christian G.E. Schiller in New York City

See: Impressions from the Riesling + Co World Tour 2010 in New York

A Clockwork Orange is a 1962 satire by Anthony Burgess, portraying a future and dystopian Western society with a culture of extreme youth rebellion and violence. A well-known adaptation of the novel is the 1971 film A Clockwork Orange by Stanley Kubrick. After Kubrick's film was released, Anthony Burgess wrote an A Clockwork Orange stage play. In 1988, a German adaptation of A Clockwork Orange featured a musical score by Germany’s leading punk rock band Die Toten Hosen. More recently, Die Toten Hosen produced wine with Martin Tesch, a German avant-garde wine maker.

The members of Die Toten Hosen are Campino (Andreas Frege), Kuddel (Andreas von Holst), Vom (Stephen 'Vom' Ritchie), Andi (Andreas Meurer) and Breiti (Michael Breitkopf). Campino the lead vocalist, also played the lead role in Wim Wenders’ movie Palermo Shooting (2008).

Vendredis du Vin

This posting is being published as part of the Vendredis du Vin, a monthly blog event in France. Participating wine bloggers - mainly in France - are all releasing postings today under the same heading. This month's Vendredi du Vin is orchestrated by Sonia Dégustation:

"Sonia Dégustation reprend, pour le mois de juillet 2012, le flambeau de la Présidence des Vendredis du Vin en nous proposant le thème : Les Vins en Série.

Voivi ce que la pétillante présidente suggère en détails au bon Peuple du Glou :

Ce n’est pas sans émotion et une légère appréhension que je prends la présidence éphémère de ces vendredis du vin du mois de juillet. Vais-je répondre aux attentes d’inspiration des vendredisiens ? La tâche n’est pas facile, beaucoup de sujets ayant déjà été traités.

Lors du dernier VdVs organisé sous la présidence de Patrick Böttcher, je me suis beaucoup amusée à faire concourir 2 chefs sur des accords vin-met. J’avais envie de poursuivre cette idée d’accord mais dans un autre domaine. Après avoir hésité (longuement) entre plusieurs possibilités, mon choix s’est porté sur la musique mais pas n’importe laquelle. Il fallait affiner ce sujet plutôt classique et qui avait déjà été traité par la jolie Eva. Et puis, rien ne vaut la contrainte pour être créatif, les amateurs d’Oulipo ne diront pas le contraire !

Ce sera donc une musique de film ou de série télévisée. Peu importe le genre ou la date de diffusion de cette musique, ce qui compte c’est l’univers qui l’entoure, l’émotion qu’elle vous procure et ce qu’elle vous donne envie de boire."

Die Toten Hosen and Weisses Rauschen

Die Toten Hosen (The Dead Pants, but more elliptically: Nothing Going On) teamed up with Martin Tesch recently, to produce Weisses Rauschen (White Noise). After the band's first wine Machmalriesling was quickly sold out, Die Toten Hosen and Martin Tesch agreed to produce another wine together, Weisses Rauschen. Of course, Martin is in the lead, but Martin told me that the band played an active role in the selection of wine, the name of the wine and the design of the bottle. The wine was named after a song of Die Toten Hosen from the album Zurueck zum Glueck (Back to Happiness).

Picture: Weisses Rauschen

The wine is a typical Tesch Riesling: No frills, crisp with fine grape flavor reminiscent of apple and apricot. It was environmentally-friendly grown in the vineyard, and naturally fermented and aged in the cellar.

See: In the Glass: 2009 Weisses Rauschen – A Joint Venture of Winemaker Martin Tesch and Punk-Rock Band Die Toten Hosen

Weingut Tesch

Martin Tesch owns and runs Weingut Tesch in the Nahe valley. The Weingut has been family-owned and run since 1723 and is a member of the prestigious VDP, the century-old association of Germany’s top winemakers.

In his mid-thirties, Dr. Martin Tesch is a Ph.D. microbiologist by training. He took over Weingut Tesch in 1996 and has presided over fundamental changes both in the vineyard and the wine cellar as well as in the marketing of the Tesch wines. Martin stopped producing sweet-style wines; all Tesch wines are now dry, except, it seems, for the occasional Eiswein when conditions allow. Further, he has moved to natural and non-interventionist winemaking and strict yield control of between 20-30 hl/ha. The harvest is manual and he picks the grapes at full ripeness, but avoids botrytis. Also, he changed and simplified the label design. There are no long words anymore on the label. Finally, Martin Tesch now generally uses the Stelvin glass closure. It is a ultra-modern and expensive technical fitting.

See: The Avantgarde Wine World of Dr. Martin Tesch

Martin Tesch’s Riesling Unplugged

Martin Tesch’s Riesling Unplugged has become an international favorite.  The wine is as natural as you can get, with tremendous value placed on environmental-friendly viticulture. The wine is untreated, meaning no must concentration or capitalization.

Picture: Riesling Unplugged 2010

Tesch's Riesling Unplugged is a bone-dry, light wine with intense minerals and concentrated fruit on the nose, and a long palate with refreshing acidity.

See: In the Glass: Unplugged - Eric Clapton and Martin Tesch

and see: Tesch Riesling Unplugged 2010 and Duo Favo FAVOriten

Unplugged in Music and Wine

Unplugged stands in the pop and rock scene for performances with small audiences without reinforcement and other technical manipulations of the music; what you get is a maximum of authenticity and individuality. Unplugged stands in the German wine scene for a Riesling made by Martin Tesch according to the same principles; again, what you get is a maximum of authenticity and individuality.

Riesling People Vol. 1

Martin Tesch has published 2 avant-garde books about his world of Riesling wine and Rock and Roll music: Riesling People Vol. 1 and Riesling People Vol. 2.

Obviously, Martin Tesch is very much into Rock and Roll. He has documented his passion for wine and Rock and Roll in a book entitled Riesling People, Vol. 1.

This is an unusual book. It explains in a straightforward way, without words, what makes Martin Tesch tick and the wines he produces so special. As a picture-book and travelogue, Riesling People Vol. 1 differs dramatically from the usual wine books. Almost without words, the book tells the story of Martin Tesch and his love for Riesling and Rock and Roll music. It is narrated by black and white photography, printed on glossy paper, and showcases the ecclectic mix of wine and music in Martin's world.

Pictures: Riesling People Vol.1 and Vol.2

The central theme of the book is the Rolling Riesling Show, which was jointly organized by Martin Tesch and the guitar manufacturer Gibson. Martin Tesch took an audience that was not necessary knowledgeable about wine through six different dry Rieslings and their soil-specific differences. In addition to the Rolling Riesling Show events, the book includes pictures from London wine bars, from Hong Kong, New York, Jancis Robinson and Stuart Pigott, proud Australian importers with the first container of Tesch wines, Martin Tesch at the concert of the Tote Hosen in Trier and backstage with the Düsseldorfer Punk Rockers at Rock am Ring.

See: The Avantgarde Wine World of Dr. Martin Tesch

Riesling People Vol. 2

With the 2010 vintage, the Riesling Unplugged celebrated its 10th anniversary. At this occasion, Martin produced the audio book Riesling People Vol. 2. It is a medley of diverse contributions of a group of friends of Martin Tesch - sommeliers, customers, journalists, writers, chefs and musicians. The sommeliers Natalie Lumpp, Jürgen Fendt, Billy Wagner and others comment on Riesling Unplugged of each of the 10 vintages; Stuart Pigott talks about hunting sharks on the Nahe river. The Die Toten Hosen contributed a song to the Riesling People Vol. 2, as did Koester + Hocker and the Group Les Sauvignons. All in all, a highly entertaining and informative audio book about Martin Tesch’s Riesling Unplugged.

See: Wine Maker Martin Tesch: Riesling People Vol. 2, Germany




Schiller Wine - Related Postings

Wine Maker Martin Tesch: Riesling People Vol. 2, Germany

In the Glass: Unplugged - Eric Clapton and Martin Tesch

Impressions from the Riesling + Co World Tour 2010 in New York

When Americans Drink German Wine - What They Choose

In the Glass: 2009 Weisses Rauschen – A Joint Venture of Winemaker Martin Tesch and Punk-Rock Band Die Toten Hosen

The Avantgarde Wine World of Dr. Martin Tesch

Tesch Riesling Unplugged 2010 and Duo Favo FAVOriten


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