Crémant d'Alsace is the appellation for white and rosé Sparkling wines from the Alsace wine region in northeastern France. Introduced in August 1976, the appellation now accounts for about a quarter of the region's production, or about 45 million bottles per year, up from 31 million in 2009. Outside of Champagne (240km to the west), it is the dominant French sparkling wine appellation, with more than half of all crémant production. The cooperatives are the most important players, with Wolfberger alone producing 6 to 7 million bottles.
But many of the region's most prestigious estates produce sparkling wines. As with all French Crémant appellations, the traditional method is used to make Crémant d'Alsace. The wines must spend a minimum of nine months maturing on their lees to ensure a certain level of complexity. This ageing on the lees gives the wines a toasty, nutty, sometimes flinty Character.
The white Chardonnay is a grape variety that originated in France (Burgundy). It produces a variety of grape specially used for wine making. It is rare to find this grape to eat on our tables. This variety of grape is characterized by small bunches, and small grapes. White Chardonnay can be found in many vineyards: South West, Burgundy, Jura, Languedoc & Roussillon, Cognac, Bordeaux, Beaujolais, Savoie & Bugey, Loire Valley, Champagne, Rhone Valley, Armagnac, Lorraine, Alsace, Provence & Corsica.
wines from the region of Crémant d'Alsace go well with generally quite well with dishes of shellfish, poultry or appetizers and snacks such as recipes of fish and seafood gratin, broccoli gratin or tapenade with green olives.
On the nose in the region of Crémant d'Alsace often reveals types of flavors of citrus fruit, yeast or melon and sometimes also flavors of strawberries, cream or spices. In the mouth in the region of Crémant d'Alsace is a powerful with a nice vivacity and a fine and pleasant bubble.
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 ...
Inside the Decanter magazine July 2022 issue: FEATURES Fuller-bodied rosés: proud to be pink, Elizabeth Gabay MW Can rosé wines really age?, Elizabeth Gabay MW 10 reasons to drink English sparkling wine, Susy Atkins Decanter guide to picnicking for wine lovers, Chris Losh Piedmont Nebbiolo guide: the latest releases, Aldo Fiordelli Winemaker profile: Sam Kaplan, Jonathan Cristaldi in Napa Valley LEARNING Wine wisdom: Expert tips to help you on your journey through wine Read the new issue in full ...
Do growers make wine – or do markets? Growers, of course. Yet markets define the scope of the grower’s creative efforts by what they reward or sanction. When markets are neglectful and unresponsive, there’s little the grower can do but conform. It’s a problem the world over. Here’s an example. The river Moselle/Mosel rises to the wet west of the Vosges mountains, then curves in a long green arc heading north through Epinal, Metz and (along the left bank) Luxembourg’s Grand Duchy, turning east at ...
