An anonymous brick warehouse somewhere on the outer reaches of Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn, New York might seem an unlikely place to discover distinctive Alsace Pinot Noir wines. But when Isabelle Legeron, M.W.’s “2017 RAW WINE” Fair took place in the warehouse, talented Alsace grower Christian Binner’s reds provided a highlight as one hundred fifty producers from around the world poured samples of wines “grown naturally, made naturally.”
Alsace white wine fans take note. Just in time for holiday celebrations and dinners, father and son winegrowers Bernard and Alexandre Schoffit of Colmar offer three terrific wines with contrasting styles. All are ready for immediate enjoyment and available through Weygandt Wines in Washington, D.C. Pennsylvania’s PLCB Premium Collection stores also offer two of the wines.
Burgundy may be Pinot Noir’s spiritual home, but Alsace winegrowers’ palpable passion for Pinot Noir cannot be ignored. Leading winegrowers such as André Ostertag, Christian Beyer, Jean-Paul and Marie Zusslin, Maxime Barmès and Rémy Gresser embody the renewed dedication to producing high quality, delicious Pinot Noir wines worthy of international attention. Each grower offers an ambitious vision for Alsace red wines.
If you haven’t heard of poke bowls, don’t worry. You will. Just ask Angela Earley, a partner in Penn Avenue Fish Company in Pittsburgh’s Strip District.
It’s New Year’s again. A time when enjoying wine on the night before and the day of is not only condoned but expected. So start anew with resolve and gratitude while celebrating with the ol’ bubbly.
Mention Alsace in France and invariably you’ll hear: “One eats and drinks well in Alsace.”
It’s true. Notable, modestly priced coups de cœur—instant personal favorite restaurants—abound. They reflect an unique mix of French, German and Swiss cultures while relying on the glorious bounty of regional products coming Alsace’s diverse soils and remarkably dry, sunny climate.
By most measures, the F.E. Trimbach’s riesling Clos Sainte Hune remains the flagship of Alsace’s dry white wines. Made from grapes grown in Rosacker vineyard’s distinctive Dolomitic limestone, the wine’s consistent elegance, complexity and fidelity to terroir certainly merit accolades.
But Alsace’s glorious dry rieslings do not stop there. The sheltering Vosges Mountain to the west create a marvelously sunny, dry climate over a stunningly diverse mosaic of soils in 51 grand cru vineyards. This provides scores of outstanding Alsace winegrowers with singular opportunities at every turn to make world-class dry rieslings worthy of serious consideration and enjoyment.
Beblenheim, Alsace, France
Domaine Bott-Geyl’s talented winegrower Jean-Christophe Bott clearly enjoys putting boots in vineyard soils. For our 9:30 AM appointment he arrives on a small tractor direct from early morning vineyard work.