Alsace Grand Cru is the appellation for the best still white wines in the Alsace region of northeastern France. Created in 1983, the appellation is based on a classification of the region's Vineyards made in 1975 and has been subject to several subsequent revisions. An Alsace Grand Cru wine is - almost without exception - produced from a single Grape variety. This will be indicated on the label, along with the name of the vineyard where the grapes were grown.
The grape varieties permitted under the appellation laws are Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Pinot Gris and Muscat. A small number of exceptions to this rule have emerged in recent years - the result of vigorous lobbying by local producers. The vineyards of Altenberg de Bergheim, Kaefferkopf and Zotzenberg are allowed to produce blended wines, each with its own permitted varieties and relative proportions. The promotion of Kaefferkopf to Grand Cru status and the delimitation of the appellation caused a controversy that made headlines in France.
Pinot Gris is a grey grape variety mutated from Pinot Noir. It has its origins in Burgundy, where it is called pinot-beurot in reference to the colour of the grey robes worn by the monks of the region. Established in Alsace since the 17th century, pinot gris was called tokay until 2007. It is made up of bunches of small berries that vary in colour from pink to blue-grey. It is particularly well suited to the continental climate because it is resistant to the cold in winter and to spring frosts. This variety also likes dry limestone soils with plenty of sunshine in the summer. Pinot Gris is well suited to late harvesting or to the selection of noble grapes, depending on the year and the concentration of sugars in the berries. Pinot Gris wines are distinguished by their aromatic complexity of white fruits, mushrooms, honey, vanilla, cinnamon, etc., and their great finesse. In the Loire Valley, pinot gris is used in the Coteaux-d'Ancenis appellations. It gives dry or sweet wines with pear and peach aromas.
sweet wines from the region of Alsace Grand Cru go well with generally quite well with dishes of pork, rich fish (salmon, tuna etc) or spicy food such as recipes of alsatian sauerkraut, zucchini gratin with tuna and tomato or lomo saltado.
On the nose in the region of Alsace Grand Cru often reveals types of flavors of earth, pineapple or floral and sometimes also flavors of cinnamon, almonds or stone. In the mouth in the region of Alsace Grand Cru is a powerful mainly marked by the residual sugar.
It is always reassuring to find flourishing examples of family continuity in French wine estates. At the famous Domaine Zind-Humbrecht in Alsace, Pierre-Emile Humbrecht is the latest to join the family business. In preparation, he studied at the Changins School of Viticulture and Enology in Switzerland and then completed internships at wine estates, beginning with Thérèse Chappaz in that same country for 18 months, followed by a six-month period at Domaine Tissot in the Jura and then nearly eigh ...
France’s 2022 wine harvest is likely to be between 42.6 million and 45.6m hectolitres, up by 13% to 21% on the frost-hit 2021 vintage and more in-line with the country’s five-year average. One hectolitre is equivalent to 100 litres. Yet drought could impact on yields in the coming weeks, adding extra uncertainty in several regions, said the French agriculture ministry’s Agreste statistics unit. Expected vintage quality isn’t covered by the preliminary outlook. It added the 2022 growing season is ...
Disconcerting: I couldn’t forget this bottle for days afterwards. Still can’t. Back in August, wine critic Lin Liu MW (together with her partner Philippe Lejeune of Château de Chambert in Cahors) came to dinner, en route to a short holiday in Provence. One of the bottles Lin brought for us to try together was the 2018 Les Rocheuses, Parcelles No 5 et 6, from Château Le Rey in Castillon Côtes de Bordeaux. It came in a slope-shouldered bottle, not a classic Bordeaux bottle. We tried it with some R ...
