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Clemens Busch Mosel Riesling Marienburg Rothenpfad Grosses Gewachs 2023

$6499 $7199

The Rothenpfad is the geological oddball of Clemens Busch's lineup. It sits on a vein of iron- and copper-rich red slate that surfaces in only a handful of famous Mosel sites before ending right here in Punderich. That red slate gives this bone-dry Grosses Gewachs Riesling a distinct personality: more spice, more savory depth, a slightly warmer-feeling core than its gray-slate siblings. Farmed biodynamically from old, ungrafted vines, it's powerful yet precise, with a finish that just keeps going. One for anyone who wants to taste how dramatically a single vineyard's stone can shape a wine.

Shipping

Every step of the journey is managed to uphold the integrity of each bottle.

  • Nationwide Access: Flat-rate shipping available to most U.S. states with delivery in 3-5 business days.
  • Temperature-Monitored Shipping: We closely monitor weather conditions and make informed decisions to ensure shipments travel safely, with insulated packaging and refrigerated transport available when required.
  • Wine-Specific Protective Packaging: Specialized materials designed to maintain label integrity and prevent breakage during transit.
  • Provenance Assured: All wines are maintained in climate-controlled conditions at our shop until the moment of dispatch.

Returns & Exchanges

We stand behind every bottle we sell.

  • If the wine is less than 10 years old and it is corked, you may return it to us for a full refund or exchange within 60 days of purchase. You must show us proof of purchase. We understand that you may not live near a shop and that it is difficult to ship open bottles of wine to us, so if there's any problem feel free to Contact Us and we'll work it out.
  • For wines older than 10 years, the consumer bears the risk of a faulty cork, but we accept returns of older bottles if the wine is faulty as a result of improper storage. Please come by the store or Contact Us if there is a problem.
  • We may, at our discretion and to the extent permitted by law, accept returns of unopened wines within 30 days of purchase if they were properly stored by the purchaser, subject to a 15% re-stocking fee.

View our complete return policy →

Have Questions?

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Hours

Monday - Friday: 11am - 8pm

Saturday: 12pm - 5pm

CLOSED SUNDAYS

Email: help@flatiron-wines.com
Phone: (415) 780-1405


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Antonio Galloni

96 points

"The 2023 Pündericher Marienburg Rothenpfad Grosses Gewächs was grown on red slate and harvested from vines up to 100 years old. It has a touch of red apple, yarrow and tansy on the nose. The palate is like an arrow. There's a missive of lemon urgency and a spurt of freshness, tingling, stony, salty, alive and so energetic. This is concentrated but walks on light feet. It almost takes flight. The finish is endlessly mouthwatering." —Anne Krebiehl MW

Robert Parker

94 points

"The 2023 Rothenpfad GG Pündericher Marienburg offers an intense, generous, flinty and savory bouquet of ripe and lush yellow tropical fruits intermingled with saline notes of crushed rocks. Round and refined, with playful course over the palate and structured by crystalline acidity, this is an intense, sharp and finely grippy Riesling with a quite powerful finish. This is still a young Rothenpfad and will possibly refine over the years in the bottle. 12% stated alcohol. Natural cork. Tasted at the domaine in March 2026." —Stephan Reinhardt

More about Clemens Busch

Clemens Busch is among the Mosel producers who were early leaders in what you might think of as Germany's new school. It's a movement that emphasizes dry wines, organic farming, and traditional techniques in the winery (such as natural fermentation and the use of fuders), often made from old vines in out-of-the-way places. It's a movement that has given us names like Peter Lauer, Knebel, Weiser-Künstler, and Falkenstein, and has definitely been a key factor in re-sparking American interest in German wine.

Clemens Busch makes wines in a wild corner of the northern Mosel where the vineyards are collectively known as Marienburg. The Marienberg was collateral damage of German bureaucracy in 1971. It's 23 hectares were expanded to include 91 hectares and its reputation quickly faded. Clemens and Rita have spent a lifetime teasing out the once recognized parcels and applying their lost names. Red, grey and blue slate snake through the vineyard. Each bottle, besides being a single vineyard, is further divided by slate type with a corresponding capsule to indicate which color it was grown on.

A fifth generation winemaker in his family (with the same name for seven generations!), Clemens Busch is a pioneer of biodynamic Riesling in the Mosel and quite the iconoclast. He converted his insanely steep vineyards in Pünderich to organic farming back in 1984 and has more recently converted them to biodynamic farming, something far from the norm in the Mosel. The town of Pünderich sits right on the border between the middle and lower Mosel where there exists a wealth of diversity in soils - primarily gray slate, red slate, and blue slate.

Wine Details

  • Grape Variety

    Riesling

  • Vintage

    2023

  • Size

    750ml

  • Farming Practice

    Biodynamic

  • Style

    Fruity

  • Sweetness

    Dry

  • Body

    Light Bodied

Flatiron's Take

From the Importer

Tasting Notes & Food Pairings

Perfect Pairings

Roast pork, smoked trout, or spiced dishes like tandoori chicken and curried lentils.

Tasting Profile

Medium-bodied white, dry, with citrus, orchard fruit, spice and a savory, mineral finish.

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