2012 Alsace

Remarkable value can be found in Trimbach's Vielles Vignes bottling, this is textbook dry Riesling. The nose offers intense citric fruit with hints of riper white stone fruit, very clean and fresh. Impressively textured on the palate, there is more flesh and concentration and flesh on show here than I expected. Lime fruit and mineral hints, beautifully balanced with saline notes.  Deliciously dry on the finish, inviting you in for more.

Famously controversial for opting out of the Grand Cru classification back in 1975 on account of the overly generous yields & low sugar levels (low quality) required, in the past five years the negociant has added 15 hectares of prime Grand Cru sites, notably in Osterberg, Geisberg, & Schlossberg, bringing their total to 45ha.  So the family are clearly not closing the door on the possibility of releasing single Grand Cru vineyard wines, albeit in tiny quantities. However they lament the fact that France’s supermarkets continue to buy up 75% of the region’s production, selling Grand Cru wines at around €7/bottle on the shelf.
Meanwhile their brands of (Riesling) Cuvee Frederic Emile, (Pinot Gris) Reserve Personnelle & (Gewurztraminer) Cuvee des Seigneurs de Ribeaupierre remain central  to the range, made from both own fruit & bought in fruit; they remain a clear step up in terroir finesse from the fruitier ‘Reserve’ lines.  Clos Ste. Hune is estate’s finest Riesling, from a 1.67ha ‘clos’ within Grand Cru Rosacker; the provenance readily communicated but still absent from the label.  So as winemaker Pierre Trimbach signs off his 34th vintage in charge, this is still very much an estate to watch.

These wines are considered the benchmark for quality, consistency and style.  
Martyn Rolph, Private Account Manager