Posts Tagged ‘Alsace’
MWG July 17th tasting: Pinot Gris shoot-out
Except for a pink singleton in the middle, the rest of the tasting was a series of two-bottle flights in which a New World wine was pitched against a similar and similarly priced Old World wine. First up were a couple of affordable Pinot Grises.
Pinot Gris 2012, Willamette Valley, Elk Cove Vineyards ($26.10, 11640011)
100% Pinot Gris from vines three to 27 years old grown in various northern Willamette Valley vineyards. Manually harvested, whole-cluster pressed. Fermented at low temperatures in stainless steel tanks. 13.5% ABV. Quebec agent: Vintrinsec.
Appealing nose of pear, chalk and wax. Fruity but not to excess, with bright acidity and a hint of residual sugar. A saline undercurrent threads into the long, dry finish. Pure and vibrant – an easy-drinker with no complexes. (Buy again? Sure.)
Alsace Pinot Gris 2012, Les Princes Abbés, Domaines Schlumberger ($22.85, 00913897)
100% Pinot Gris from estate grown grapes, mostly from the Schimberg lieu-dit. The grapes are manually harvested and pneumatically pressed. The must is clarified by settling, then fermented in large temperature-controlled barrels for one to four months. Maturation on the fine lees lasts six to eight months. 13.45% ABV. Quebec agent: Les Vins La Rochelle.
A more savoury nose: less fruity, more minerally, with hints of herbs and smoke. Smoother and drier on the palate, the texture slightly more viscous, the acid less bright. The wine’s weight notwithstanding, there’s not a lot of depth here. Clean, rainwatery finish. Not bad but, compared with the Elk Cove (not to mention Scheuller’s electrifying Pinot Grises), a bit of a wallflower. (Buy again? Maybe.)
MWG June 12th tasting: A classic Riesling in half bottles
La QV’s Cyril Kérébel recently joined the Mo’ Wine Group to lead a memorable tasting of 12 of his agency’s newly arrived private imports (“truly outstanding,” “one of the best,” “excellentissima” and “a fascinating selection of invariably drinkable wines” were some of the post-tasting comments). We wet our whistles with a wine imported in half bottles in response to local restaurant demand.
Alsace 2007, Riesling, Domaine Moritz ($14.00/375 ml, private import, 12 bottles/case)
The 12-hectare estate is located in Andlau, halfway between Strasbourg and Colmar. Half of its holdings, which include three grand cru vineyards, are given over to Riesling. Farming is, for all intents and purposes, organic but not certified as such. The vines average 40 years old. The grapes for this Riesling (100 %) were manually harvested, gently pressed, fermented with indigenous yeasts and matured in large old oak barrels. 12% ABV. Quebec agent: La QV/Insolite.
Classic and classy nose of lemon/lime, chalk and a hint of petrol. Dry and tart in the mouth. The upfront fruit dissovles in a swirl of minerals and lingers well into the long saline finish. Not particularly deep but pure and delicious. A hit with just about everyone around the table, this versatile wine is light and refreshing enough to make a great aperitif and substantial enough to accompany seafood and white meats. The half-bottle format only adds to the appeal. (Buy again? Definitely.)
MWG April 17th tasting (3/6): Dry and not so dry
Alto Adige 2012, Gewürztraminer, Kastelaz, Elena Walch ($40.25, 12142559)
100% Gewürztraminer from the steep Kastelaz vineyard, which has been devoted to the variety for generations. Manually harvested in two passes. The destemmed grapes are crushed, cold-macerated for six hours and pressed. The resulting juice is refrigerated and clarified by sedimentation. Fermentation, with selected yeasts, takes place at 18°C. The wine is kept on the lees for several months. 6.6 g/l residual sugar, 14.5% ABV.
Aromatic nose of rose and, yes, spice, not to mention juniper, orange blossom and a whiff of alcohol. Quite extracted but fresh and unheavy due to the bright acidity and relatively low residual sugar. The flavours echo the aromas and are joined by a hint of gin and tonic. Good depth and a lasting if heady finish. I’m not normally a fan of northern Italian Gewurzes but this is excellent, a wine that would make a good ringer in a flight of Alsatian grand crus. (Buy again? Yes.)
Alsace 2012, Gewürztraminer, Vignoble d’E, Domaine Ostertag ($31.75, 00870493)
100% organically and biodynamically farmed Gewürztraminer from several parcels located around the winery in the commune of Epfig (whence the Vignoble d’E moniker). As the wine is always made in a moelleux style, the grapes are picked late in the season. Manually harvested. Whole-cluster pressed and vinified in stainless steel tanks. Fermented with indigenous yeasts. 50 g/l residual sugar, 12% ABV.
Textbook Gewurz nose dominated by floral and lychee aromas. In the mouth, the wine is pristine, dense but still fluid, fruity but not too, quite sweet and rather long. Lovely in its slightly cloying but not caricatural way. (Buy again? If looking for a fruit-forward, luscious and definitely not dry Gewürztraminer, yes.)
After tasting the wines on their own, we tried them with a fine stinky Muenster from Yannick, which the Walch handled with aplomb and which redeemed the Ostertag.
MWG April 17th tasting (2/6): Good and grand
Alsace 2012, Riesling, Vignoble d’E, Domaine Ostertag ($25.25, 11459984)
100% organically and biodynamically farmed Riesling from 15-odd parcels located around the winery in the commune of Epfig (whence the Vignoble d’E moniker). The manually harvested whole clusters are pressed in a pneumatic press. The long fermentation with indigenous yeasts and maturation on the lees take place in stainless steel tanks, the entire process lasting just under 12 months. 5.5 g/l residual sugar, 13% ABV.
A decidedly grapey nose with dried fern, lemon-lime and lactic notes. So sleek, so fruity and so dry. Alive with acidity. Floral overtones perfume the palate while minerals stay in the background until the finish, where granite and faintly saline chalk outlast the fruit. Lovely now and capable of ageing at least another five years. (Buy again? Gladly.)
Alsace 2010, Riesling, Grand cru Muenchberg, Domaine Ostertag ($49.00, 00739821)
100% organically and biodynamically farmed Riesling from Ostertag’s 1.6 hecatres of the 17-hectare grand cru Muenchberg vineyard. The manually harvested whole clusters are pressed in a pneumatic press. The long fermentation with indigenous yeasts and maturation on the lees take place in stainless steel tanks, the entire process lasting just under 12 months. 8 g/l residual sugar, 14% ABV.
Complex, elegant and deep nose of minerals, candied lemon and pit fruit with floral and petrol notes. Not so much mouth-filling as mouth-inhabiting: richly textured, firmly structured and tightly focused yet somehow also ethereal. Layer upon layer of minerals and fruit are carried on a gushing stream of acidity that slow-fades into a nearly endless, slightly salty-sweet finish. Young and somewhat closed, though chewing the wine reveals its potential. Already spellbinding, this will only improve over the next decade or two. (Buy again? If I can lay my hands on another bottle, absolutely.)
MWG October 3rd tasting (5/7): A trio of quaffable reds
Alsace 2011, Pinot Noir, Fronenberg, Domaine Hausherr ($38.00, La QV, 6 bottles/case)
Fronenberg is a lieu-dit. This small (4 ha) estate is based in Eguisheim. Until 2000, they sold their grapes to the cooperative. Today, the man and wife team make around a dozen natural wines by themselves, with outside help only for the harvest. Their wines are certified organic, uncertified biodynamic. They work the vineyards with a horse (to avoid compacting the soil), use a manual press (slow and gentle, with minimal extraction from the stems and pips), skip the common step of débourbage (clarifying the must before fermentation by letting particulate matter settle out). The whites are field blends but this is a 100% Pinot Noir. Fermented with indigenous yeasts. Bottled unfined and unfiltered (the whites are lightly filtered). No added sulphur. 13.5% ABV.
Engaging nose of candied raspberry, crushed cedar leaves, spice and old oak. Medium-bodied, exuberantly fruity, tingling with acid, rooted in old wood and slate. Long juicy finish. So drinkable and delicious. A favourite of just about everybody around the table. Several tasters said they planned to buy a bottle despite the high price. No doubt the whimsical label, a cartoon wine-making equation, helped convince them. (Buy again? Yes, despite the high price.)
Chiroubles 2012, Damien Coquelet ($28.75, La QV, 6 bottles/case)
Now in his mid-20s, Coquelet is the stepson of renowned natural Beaujolais producer Georges Descombes. He began working in the family’s vineyards and cellars when he was five and has been making his own wines since 2007. Besides this cuvée, he produces an old-vine Chiroubles, a Morgon, a Beaujolais-Villages and the wildly popular, semi-nouveau Fou du Beaujo. This 100% Gamay is made from organically farmed, manually harvested grapes. Fermented with indigenous yeasts. Depending on the vintage, no or minimal sulphur is used. Coquelet typically bottles his cru wines a year before his stepfather, which makes them fruitier and juicier. 12% ABV.
Your classic natural Beaujolais nose: berries and cherry, barnyard, graphite, vine sap. Supple and pure, fruity but not too sweet, with lifting acidity and good length. A shade lighter and less compelling than in recent earlier vintages but still full of that silky Chiroubles charm. (Buy again? Sure.)
IGP Pays d’Urfé 2011, Les Bonichons, Domaine de la Perrière ($27.00, La QV, 6 bottles/case)
Owned by self-styled artisan-viniculteur Philippe Peulet, Domaine de la Perrière is located in the commune of Ambierle, in the upper reaches of the Loire on the northern edge of the Massif Central, about ten kilometres northwest of Roanne. The grapes for this 100% Gamay come from organically farmed vines between 15 and 50 years of age and grown in the Bonichons vineyard, whose deep sand soil is rich in quartz. The grapes are manually harvested and destemmed or not, depending on the vintage. The wine is fermented with indigenous yeasts. 12.5% ABV.
Initial reductive aromas blew off leaving a dark, almost meaty nose of slate, coal, smoke and tamari. Lighter and fruitier than expected in the mouth. Good balance between the juicy fruit, bright acidity, light tannins and general earthiness. Minerallier and grittier than the Chiroubles but with a definite rustic appeal. Cries out for some charcuterie. At $20 this vin de soif would be a no-brainer; at $27, it’s still worth considering, especially as the winemaker says it improves with a little bottle age. (Buy again? Yes, a bottle or two.)
High QQ
Crémant d’Alsace 2010, Zéro Dosage, Domaine Barmès Buecher ($23.10, 10985851)
Biodynamically farmed Pinot Auxerrois (42%), Pinot Gris (36%), Chardonnay (13%) and Pinot blanc (8%). No dosage. 13% ABV.
Abundant foam dissipates, leaving tiny bubbles in a few twisting, fast-rising streams. Subtle nose: brioche dough, lemon, hints of spice and white flowers. Softly effervescent on the palate, dry and complex, even layered. Here the fruit – lemon peel and pith, candied citron, sour green apple – is wrapped around a core of quartz and chalk. There’s just enough extract to balance the tart acidity. A yeasty note marks the long finish. The quaffability quotient* is off the charts – you can’t resist going back for another sip. The best vintage yet? (Buy again? In multiples.)
*My translation of coefficient de torchabilité, which was François Barmès’s favourite metric, or so it seemed at the MWG tasting he led a few months before his untimely death.
Munch on this
Alsace 2009, Grand cru Muenchberg, Riesling, Domaine Ostertag ($49.00, 00739821)
100% biodynamically farmed Riesling from 30- to 60-year-old vines. Manually harvested. The whole clusters were pneumatically pressed. Alcoholic fermentation, with indigenous yeasts, lasted several months. Underwent full malolactic fermentation. Matured in stainless steel tanks for about six months. 14% ABV. This is the last vintage with the interlinked-ring label; the 2010 is marketed under three different but thematically related labels.
A complex nose of white fruit, lemon and lime zest, chalk, flint and a hint of spruce resin or petrol is followed by a mouth full of citrus, pear and crystalline minerals buoyed by racy acid. The finish goes on and on. So pure, precise, balanced and dimensional. As always in a restrained style (quite the feat at 14%) but achingly beautiful. Approachable now, probably better in five, maybe even ten years. Would make a fabulous match for now-in-season Gaspé lobster or, if you can still find some, fresh snow crab. Not many bottles left in the system, so act fast. (Buy again? Oh yes.)
MWG April 18th tasting (4/9): Mann to Mann
Alsace 2011, Schlossberg Grand cru, Riesling, Domaine Albert Mann ($48.00, 11967751)
100% Riesling from biodyanmically farmed 40-year-old vines. Manually harvested. Slow pressed (pneumatic or horizontal press). Fermentation and maturation take several months, during which time the wine is in contact with its lees. Sulphur in small amounts is the only non-grape product added. 13.5% ABV.
Closed but promising nose: lemon-lime, coriander seed, minerals, a flowery meadow. Smooth and round, with noticeable residual sugar on the attack, though the wine dries as it goes along. The fruit is rich, layered and impressively dense, the acidity gleaming. Chewing reveals an underlying tautness and granitic minerality that lasts through the long finish. It may be a baby but it’s already a thoroughbred, as a decade in the cellar will surely make clear. (Buy again? Yes.)
Alsace 2011, Riesling, Cuvée Albert, Domaine Albert Mann ($27.30, 11449786)
100% Riesling from biodynamically farmed 20-year-old vines in the Rosenberg (Wettolsheim) et Altenbourg (Kientzheim) vineyards. Slow pressed. Fermented in stainless steel and on the lees for several months. Screwcap. 13% ABV.
Reductive nose (probably due to the wine not being carafed but simply opened and poured). After it blows off, a classic Riesling nose dominated by lemon-lime and kerosene. Light and smooth in the mouth. Slightly less sweet and considerably less dense, complex and dimensional than the Schlossberg. Clean citrus and mineral flavours, ripe acidity, impeccable balance and good length add up to a wine that’s easy to drink now but has the potential to age and improve for another four or five years. My only hesitation is the price, which seems high when, if you’re lucky, you can get a private import Schueller Riesling for $4 less. (Buy again? Maybe.)
MWG January 10th tasting (1/7): Fleith’s Crémant d’Alsace
The MWG recently spent an enjoyable evening with La QV’s Cyril Kérébel tasting through an impressive and wide-ranging selection of the agency’s new arrivals, all of them private imports. We wet our whistles and whet our palates with an Alsatian sparkler.
Crémant d’Alsace, Domaine Fleith ($30.75, 6 bottles/case, La QV)
A blend of biodynamically farmed Pinot Blanc and Auxerrois (65%), Riesling (20%) and Pinot Noir (15%). The producer’s website appears to indicate that the grapes are botrytized, though I can’t say I detected any botrytis aromas or flavours.
Pale yellow with electrum glints and a fine bead. Yellow apple, yeast, lemon, chalk and a white floral note. Bright in the mouth, dry, complex and pure. Soft, caressing effervescence. Long, lemon-pithy finish. Delicious and refreshing: light enough to serve as an aperitif, substantial enough to accompany the first course if it’s something like coquilles Saint-Jacques. (Buy again? Gladly.)
Riesling rules
If the photographs of dishes in Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi’s excellent new Jerusalem: A Cookbook leap out at you, the one of the crazy-good and super-easy Roasted Chicken with Clementines and Arak (adapted recipe follows) may be the long-jump champion. The combo of citrus, fennel (blubs, seeds and spirits) and a hint of sweetness present a wine-pairing challenge that Riesling seems uniquely qualified to meet.
Alsace 2009, Riesling, Grafenreben, Domaine Bott-Geyl ($27.80, 11778037)
100% biodynamically farmed Riesling from the Grafenreben lieu-dit in Zellenberg. The manually harvested whole bunches are gently and slowly pneumatically pressed. The resulting must is allowed to settle for 24 hours. Fermentation with native yeasts begins two or three days later and can last up to six months. When fermentation is complete, the wine is racked off the lees. No chaptalization or fining. 13.5% ABV.
Bone dry. Slight fizz at first. Among the most crystalline Rieslings I’ve encountered. Considerable extract and biting acidity. The ripe fruit is lemony and has a lot of pith. As the wine breathes and warms, it gains green apple and peach notes. The fruit quick-fades on the finish, leaving bitter minerals, a hint of hard caramel and maybe, just maybe, a whiff of petrol.
A fine bottle. The clerk I queried about the wine hadn’t tasted it but thought it would be a step toward off-dry. We should have looked more closely at the label, which bears a useful dry-to-sweet scale rating the wine 1 out of a possible 10. In any event, the flavours and weight worked well with the chicken, though a slightly less dry wine would have made for an even better match.
Brett happens 