GEMS UNEARTHED
GEMS UNEARTHED
A look at the top Alsace Grand Cru wines
When it comes to French wines, the term Grand Cru has a magical connotation. But just how magical the name of a particular Grand Cru vineyard and the wines named after it really are depends enormously on the region. Both in terms of reputation and to your wallet, it makes a huge difference if a Grand Cru white wine is from Burgundy or Alsace.
Let me give a few concrete examples. The world’s most expensive dry white wine is the Montrachet Grand Cru from Domaine Leflaive in Burgundy, which Wine Searcher prices at US$12,750 (S$17,400) for the 2015 vintage (the latest available) and US$19,590 for the 2014. In contrast, even the most expensive Grand Cru wines from Alsace are those from the Rangen Grand Cru site in the commune of Thann, produced by Domaine Zind Humbrecht, and they lie at just under $100 for the 2019 vintage. That’s a more than a hundred-fold price difference.
The question is whether that price difference is reflected in the wine quality, and for us the answer is… not necessarily. Sure, the best Grand Cru dry whites from Burgundy are amazing wines, and for sommeliers and collectors around Planet Wine they remain the benchmark for the chardonnay grape. The Montrachet Grand Cru is an example of how enormous global demand for a very limited production combined with high quality results in stratospheric prices for certain Burgundian Grand Cru wines.
For Alsace, demand is almost never as great, but what about quality? Recently, we tasted the 2018 and 2019 vintages of the Rangen Grands Crus from Zind Humbrecht, and rated them every bit as highly as the best Grand Cru whites of Burgundy. This situation creates a golden opportunity for
savvy consumers, and our Top 10 is designed to help you make the most of it.
There’s another important reason to take these wines seriously. Many consumers wonder what the “mineral character” that sommeliers and wine critics often talk about tastes like. Alsace Grand Cru is an ideal way to find out.
The hashtag #alsacerocks is a marketing tool for the region’s wines, but it fits, because the best Alsace Grands Crus have intense notes of flint, chalk, wet stones and dry earth. This, together with the combination of generosity and freshness typical for Alsace whites, makes them a special category.
“A true Grand Cru is a singularity of character with consistently high quality,” says Marie Zusslin, from Domaine Valentin Zusslin. “That’s why my idea is to show the uniqueness of each site.” Her Riesling Alsace Grand Cru Pfingstberg 2017 is a magnificent expression of this idea.
“Alsace has enormous geological diversity within a small area, and each Grand Cru has its own identity,” Eric Kientzler of the Kientzler estate in Ribeauvillé tells me. “For example, the wines from our three riesling Grands Crus are very different, though the Osterberg, Kirchberg de Ribeauvillé and Geisberg sites are neighbours.”
With its combination of elegance and minerality, his Riesling Alsace Grand Cru Kirchberg de Ribeauvillé 2018 is an ideal introduction to the Alsace Grand Cru category.
Alsace Grands Crus are nearly always varietal whites, with the variety named on the label: gewurztraminer, muscat, pinot gris or riesling. Riesling is the most successful grape for Alsace Grand Cru in the market, because these wines are always dry and their bright acidity accentuates this.
For us, the Domaine Weinbach Riesling Alsace Grand Cru Schlossberg Cuvée Ste Catherine is a near-perfect example of an Alsace Grand Cru, combining mineral subtlety with great concentration and length.