2007 Alsace

Zind Humbrecht's 2007 Gewurztraminer Clos Windsbuhl shows an aromatic nose of exotic fruits and jasmine flowers that gives way to a palate of extreme elegance and well balanced sweetness. Concentrated flavours fill the mouth with lush lychee notes, honeysuckle, exotic spices and tropical fruits. Boisterously expressive yet graceful, this will hold for many years, gaining more layers of additional complexity.

Zind Humbrecht's 2007 Riesling Clos Häuserer shows all the limestone/calcareous character this grape variety can acquire from a healthy, slow ripening vintage: lots of minerals, juicy acidity and good weight. The lower than usual alcohol level makes it a fantastic food wine and its delicate finish is more enhanced by its acidity and minerality than sheer power.

Showing a harmonious combination of smoke and flint flavours with hints of white fruit on the nose, the 2007 Pinot Gris Rangen is delectably balanced. This intricate wine inundates the palate with flavours of peaches, honey and poached pears. Sweetness shines through on the palate, but thanks to its vibrant acidity, it blends in very quickly. Pinot Gris Rangen should evolve and drink well for 15 years.

When one talks of Grand Cru status in white wines, we often fall into the habit of talking about Burgundy and the famed vineyards of Montrachet, Corton Charlemagne, etc.  Wines that often require a price tag easily into the mid to high hundreds and beyond.  There is an enclave of vines within a tiny region in Alsace that produces possibly one of the most age-worthy and complex white wines available – “Clos Ste Hune”, owned by the Trimbach family.  The 26ha of vines in Rosacker famously include a tiny 1.67ha vineyard that makes arguably the greatest Riesling in Alsace, Domaine Trimbach’s Clos-Ste-Hune.

This wine is complex and age-worthy. A dry expression of Riesling but with so much going on within its iron like grip that it’s hard to keep up. Always a touch richer and maybe less austere than its smaller sibling cuvee Frederic Emile, but far more complex with energy rich fruit and penetratingly long and persistent on the palate, full of grapefruit, quinine, Lemon pith, musk, the list goes on and on.
Stuart Rae - Private Account Manager