Antoine Konrad - A seductive cuvée
I know nothing about house music and I never really wanted to get into it. Until now. And this is how it happened:
Every autumn for over 60 years, the Expovina wine fair has taken place in Zurich on its wine ships. Nearly 100 producers, importers, and wine merchants present their wares aboard the 12 ships on Lake Zurich, offering around 4,000 wines from all the world's major wine-growing regions for tasting. The writer, of course, couldn't taste all the wines; but on her last visit, out of, let's say, 100 wines tasted, only one champagne remained in her sparkling memory: that of a house DJ.
To briefly describe the champagne: the sparkling wine smells like a freshly opened bakery; and this promising anticipation is not disappointed, quite the opposite. On the palate, there's a crisp effervescence, yet it's soft, velvety, and smooth. Mouthwatering. Like a fresh brioche smeared with lemon marmalade.
My interest was piqued: who is this man who produces music that is completely not to my taste, and champagne that is completely to my taste?
A Google search for DJ Antoine yields almost 24 million results. That's quite impressive. For comparison, a search for "Dom Perignon" returns around 9 million hits, while "Champagne" yields just over 20 million results.
A brief summary: DJ Antoine was born Antoine Konrad in Basel in 1975. He had his international breakthrough in 2011 with the single "Welcome to St. Tropez," and with "Ma Chérie" he also produced the most successful single by a Swiss musician of all time in terms of sales figures, conquering the world beyond the Alps.
So I started listening to his music. Let me just say this: I'd rather not speculate on which risk group psychology would place Antoine Konrad in based on his lyrics.
To avoid completely shattering my positive impression, I decided to do some more research and booked tickets for one of his parties; and so it came to pass that one late evening I found myself at a house party for the very first time. The expected culture shock failed to materialize; my two friends were delighted by my uncharacteristic openness to Zurich's nightlife, dancing like teenagers right in front of the DJ booth, and I took the opportunity at the bar to expand my knowledge of Konrad and sample my way through the wine list, which offered exclusively his wines.
The artist offers a variety of wines: In addition to the Champagne I already know, there is also a Rosé Champagne, Prosecco, a Blanc de Blanc from Veneto, a Meursault, the “OUD”, consisting of 50% Chardonnay and 50% Sauvignon Blanc and also from Veneto, as well as three different Pinot Noirs from Germany.
And it was with these Pinot Noirs from Germany that the DJ's wine career began:
On the recommendation of a friend, Antoine visited Norbert Spielmann's winery in Wertheim, the northernmost town in Baden-Württemberg, in 2011. He had originally only intended to "have a look" and perhaps take a few bottles home; however, he ended up spending over six hours tasting his way through the barrels with Norbert Spielmann, and thus the wine-fueled idea of creating a wine together was born. The historic "Alte Grafschaft" winery is picturesquely situated on the Bavarian side of the Main River, overlooking the castle.
Wine has been produced here for over 400 years, so they certainly know their stuff. In 1611, the Counts of Wertheim acquired the estate to cultivate their wines from the best vineyards there; and even then, Wertheim wine was renowned far beyond the borders of the county. It's also well known that when Goethe exclaimed, "Bring me another bucket of Wertheim wine!" it was usually a wine from the two best steep slopes.
Since the division of the County of Wertheim by Napoleon in 1803, it has been possible after centuries to reunite the two best steep slopes in the territory of the former county in one winery: the “Kaffelstein” in the Bavarian Main Valley (Franconia) and the “Satzenberg” in the Baden Tauber Valley (Tauber Franconia).
Today, these two steep slopes are once again united under one roof. Steep slopes, which are increasingly being abandoned these days due to the enormous effort and extensive manual labor required, are the focus of the Alte Grafschaft winery: they want to preserve this unique cultural landscape and spare no effort to do so. Machine cultivation is impossible on both steep slopes, which necessitates a significantly higher workload; one could almost say they practice viticulture as it was in Napoleon's time – entirely by hand.
This benefits the wines: they perfectly reflect the terroir of the two vineyards, which are exceptionally subtle and reveal the best qualities of the respective grape varieties, the soil, and the extraordinary microclimate. Honest, mineral wines with character, unmistakable. Just like Antoine Konrad. A perfect match.
The musician's early experiences in the world of wine were primarily with robust wines from the New World. After repeatedly mentioning some of his favorite wines (mainly Californian vintages) in interviews in the early 2000s, the gifted Grisons winemaker Martin Donatsch promptly sent the DJ some of his wines, pointing out that Switzerland also produced excellent wines. Antoine was thrilled, and a deep friendship has connected the two ever since. In 2004, he even became an ambassador for the "Donatsch Chardonnay Unique." A pivotal moment. "That's when I realized that I wanted to have my own wine label someday."
And what he wants, he gets. His label, Konrad Wines, encompasses a wide variety of styles; but all the wines have one thing in common: the grapes for all these delicious drinks thrive on the finest vineyards in Europe.
Incidentally, the writer, although soon to be 40, was by no means the oldest person at the party, contrary to her fears that only the DJ was older: the mix of young beauties who adored the winemaker at the mixing desk with, how should I say, very open admiration, older, distinguished-looking men with equally distinguished companions, crazy characters and even some familiar faces such as an uncle (!!), which surprised me somewhat and – I was not surprised – the winemaker Martin Donatsch.
Antoine Konrad , a feast for the eyes, palate and many millions of ears, is therefore quite right when he says: "Wine connects and creates friends".
I'm eager to see his next drops. And, I must admit, his next title as well.
Author Shirley A. Amberg
Shirley was born in Zurich and is a blend of Swiss, South African, Austrian, and English heritage. The Swiss influence is responsible for structure and foundation, while the South African adds harmony and passion. The Austrian brings charm and cheerfulness, and the English ensures she keeps her horizons open and her curiosity thirsty. Before turning her passion into a career, she worked in investment banking. On her website, Shirleyamberg.com , she writes about her tastings and publications on wine.
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