German Sekt hasn’t always had the best reputation, but there are some worth seeking out.
Sekt
Sekt is simply the word for “sparkling wine” in German. Therefore, sekt could be from anywhere in Germany or Austria. In fact, sparkling wine from anywhere in the world could also be called sekt. It’s not like the terms Champagne, Cava or Prosecco which can only come from their country and/or region.
German sekt has historically been a cheap, bulk sparkling and only popular within Germany. They were not always sourced from Germany too. Most tend to use the Charmat method and can come from various local varieties.
However, there are designated higher quality Winzersekt, which are monovarietal estate German sparklings. In addition, more are using Traditional Champagne Method or Klassische Flaschengärung. Actually, Winzersekt must be vintage Traditional Method sparkling. It’s often made from Riesling, but they can also feature other traditional varieties like Pinot and Chardonnay. Unfortunately, not a lot is exported, but they’re usually more affordable than Champagne.
I found a bottle of sekt from one of the best producers from Germany. Of course, all sparklings have to be compared to Champagne, which is the benchmark, so I got one made from Chardonnay.
A quick but controversial disclaimer: I’m not a huge fan of sparkling wines in general although many wine lovers, wine geeks and wine influencers adore Champagne as the epitome of wine. I just think they’re overpriced and hyped up from years of marketing associating Champagne with great moments in life. I also find the bubbles distracting although maybe my palate is not sophisticated enough to sense all the other aspects of wine and bubbles at the same time.
However, I still agree Champagne is the benchmark for sparkling wine, and I’ve had some great, interesting Champagne or other sparkling wines. Besides the bubbles, for me, most good sparkling wines are distinguished from most good white wines by strong autolytic notes (from the yeast) that reveal itself as bread, pastry or brioche. That comes from a lot of time on lees. That’s what I look for the most. Let’s see how this sekt compares. 
Tasting Notes
2014 Sekthaus Raumland Reserve Chardonnay Brut Rheinhessen
In 2019, Raumland was the first sparkling wine estate to be accepted into the Verband Deutscher Prädikatsweingüter (VDP). It’s considered to be the benchmark of quality German sekt. They make the most expensive sekts on the market too. They’re so influential that the founder is the head of the German sparkling winemakers association.
Organic old vines. Vinified in 76% stainless steel and 24% barriques. 90 months on lees. 4 g/l residual sugar. I like the palate more than the nose at the moment, which seems closed down. The nose doesn’t have a lot of the yeasty, bready notes you get in Champagne method sparkling. There’s a bit of caramel and other oak notes. It still tastes young. The bubbles are fine and good quality. The acid is a little lower than average Champagne but it’s fresh. The palate is still quite expressive with both savory minerality and fruity notes. Dry. This is good and along the lines of Champagne but given the age and 90 months lees time, I was expecting more complexity overall. Maybe more is still to come and if the nose were open, it’d deserve a higher score, but this is what it’s like at this moment. At $50, it’s still not a bad deal for a good quality vintage sparkling given non-vintage Champagne can be around the same price, but I was hoping to find an absolute steal of a sparkling. Given some of the high praise for this producer, I suspect it will open up and get better though. 91+