Amelie et Charles Sparr 2017 Alsace Riesling 'Sentiment'

From vineyards near Colmar, this is a clean and zippy Riesling with medium weight and texture. Textbook dry Alsatian Riesling!  -EL

Barth, Laurent 2018 Alsace Riesling Rebgarten VV

From old vines in a south facing vineyard of sandy granite soils in Bennwihr, Laurent Barth produced this superb dry Riesling that shows a bright pale gold color, with ripe floral aromas of pear, almond, citrus and spice. The palate however, while rich, shows a dense, ripe character, but without sweetness, very mineral and with firm acidity. Green apple, citrus peel, almond and stone flavors linger in the long, nicely balanced finish. This is a lovely Riesling to pair with a wide variety of fish and white meat dishes, highly recommended! (Open well in advance if possible, or cellar 3 to 5 years then enjoy till 2030.)

Barth, Laurent 2019 Alsace Racines Métisses

Laurent Barth's 2019 "Racines Metisses" is a delightful blend of many grape  varieties from his tiny organic estate in Bennwihr. Always around 50% Pinot Auxerrois (fermented separately), with Muscat, Pinot Gris, Gewurztraminer, and a touch of Riesling. The idea here is to make a wine that is easy to drink, says Laurent, and he nails it! The wine shows bright citrus, lime-flower, white fruits and a subtle touch of spice on the palate. The 2019 has ripe orchard and stone fruit on the palate, with citrus and floral notes, and a chiseled, mineral finish, thanks to the granite soils.  Delicious!  Eben Lillie

Barth, Laurent 2019 Alsace Pinot D'Alsace

Laurent Barth makes beautifully balanced Alsatian wines from his tiny organic estate in Bennwhir, near Colmar. The 2019 Pinot d'Alsace (Pinot Auxerrois with a bit of Pinot Noir) is a lovely aperitif and a perfect wine for many fish and chicken dishes. Showing pretty aromas of pear, green apple, almond and lime-flower with citrus, pear, almond, honeysuckle and herbal flavors on the palate - really pretty, round and balanced  with minerals and white fruits in the  supple finish - this is a great value and a good introduction to the beautiful wines of Laurent Barth. David Lillie

Bechtold 2018 Cremant d'Alsace (Pinot Auxerrois/Chardonnay)

A blend of Pinot Auxerrois and Chardonnay (yes, Chardonnay in Alsace!) from a long-time organic estate in Alsace. Very classy, dry and framed by mineral cut. There's enough golden fruit and brioche on the nose to give the sense of broadness, but overall it's a clean and fresh traditional style sparkler... and a fantastic deal!  -EL

Beck-Hartweg 2018 Vin d'Alsace Pinot Noir "F" (Frankstein)

Though the fruit for this bottling all comes from the Grand Cru Frankstein vineyard, Pinot Noir does not have Grand Cru status in Frankstein (only white varieties are awarded Grand Cru Frankstein status), hence the name "F," for Frankstein. This is elegant, and red fruited, like a classic Burgundian Pinot, but also shows some peppery, darker fruit more reminiscent of a regional Alsace expression. Grapes see about 2 weeks of maceration, with occasional delicate pouring of a few liters on the cap to avoid oxidation, otherwise, very little extraction. The wine, is however very present on the mid-palate, and though approachable now, should be really enjoyable in the next 1-3 years.  

Beck-Hartweg 2018 Vin d'Alsace Granit

This is a field blend that was made to show the character of the soil in Dambach. Florian and Mathilde selected three vineyards that produced what they call the most "salivant" wines (salivant roughly translates to mouth-watering). This quality is common with wines that come from granite terroir, hence the name of this cuvée. The area around Dambach-la-Ville is known for a high percentage of granitic soils, so this is very much a Dambach wine. A blend of Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, and Riesling, it has a faint pink hue, and a fascinating saline/mineral quality. No SO2 added.

Beck-Hartweg 2019 Vin d'Alsace Gewurztraminer "Bungertal"

A lovely little dry Gewurztraminer from Florian and Mathilde Beck-Hartweg. Floral and crisp, textbook Gewurz.

Frick 2000 Alsace Pinot Blanc Precieuses

Frick 2000 Alsace Sylvaner Bergweingarten

Frick 2018 Alsace Pinot Blanc Classique

This is all Pinot Blanc from three parcels. Fresh, vertical and very tasty.

Frick 2018 Alsace Muscat Sec

The 2018 Muscat sec is from parcels above and below Grand Cru Vorbourg on mixed terroir of limestone/marne/sandstone. Aged on the lees for 11 months, bottled with zero added SO2, 13.1% alc, zero RS.Pale gold color, nose fresh, intense and intriguing with yellow flowers, chamomille and muscat. The palate is dry, ripe and ample with spicy fruit, with bitter pomelo (grapefruit) finishing with lovely minerality and ripe muscat flavors. A lovely aperitif or serve with terrines and vegetable tarts, artichokes, asparagus, fennel, ceviche with dill...

Frick 2018 Alsace Sylvaner Bergweingarten

100% Sylvaner from the lieu-dit "Bergweingarten" on brown calcerous soils, mid-slope, aged on the lees for seven months in old foudre. This is a vibrant dry Sylvaner, drinking more like a dry Riesling. Aromas of yellow fruits, flowery hay, white pepper and wet limestone. Full-bodied and dry, the palate is well-structured and mineral with flavors of white peach, black peppercorn and limestone with a very long saline finish. Serve this lovely dry Sylvaner with shellfish, grilled fish and fish in sauce, and roast chicken with lemon and rosemary.

Hausherr, Hubert & Heidi 2008 Alsace Au Bout du Sentier

Though this Riesling was produced before the Hausherrs converted to Biodynamic farming and started making natural wines, it is proof that I actually do love varietal wines from Alsace and I don't mind a little added SO2! The wine was fermented in stainless steel, and bottled with 20 mg/l of SO2. Soils here are a mix of marl and sandstone with north-west exposition. It's a very classic Alsace Riesling, with notes of petrol and passion fruit. There's lovely ripeness here, balanced by zippy acidity, and subtle oxidative notes. -EL

Hausherr, Hubert & Heidi 2014 Alsace Blanc de Noir

This is a special bottling that the Hausherrs made from a difficult 2014 harvest. Mildew had created problems with their tiny plot of Pinot Noir, so they made a Blanc de Noirs from their miniscule 0.3 hectares. They then aged the wine for 4 years in a large barrel. The result is a deep golden, slightly oxidative and remarkably expressive wine, with notes of butterscotch and creme brûlée. -EL

Hausherr, Hubert & Heidi 2017 Alsace Aussitôt Bue

Aussitôt Bue is a blend of Pinot Auxerrois* and Sylvaner, with a small amount of Tokai Pinot Gris, from an east-facing parcel on sandstone terroir. Notes of white melon, lemon curd, and lychee, with a touch of fleshiness on the palate. A friendly wine, and a great aperitif sipper.  -EL*I ask every Alsace producer what the difference is between Pinot Blanc and  Auxerrois, and Hubert had some insight on the matter! As he explained, Auxerrois typically has lower acidity than its close cousin Pinot Blanc, but is known for lovely  aromatics, while Pinot Blanc is greener and less beautiful aromatically.

Hausherr, Hubert & Heidi 2017 Alsace Jardin Là-Haut

Hausherr, Hubert & Heidi 2017 Alsace Le Sentier au Sud

A blend of Riesling and Pinot Gris from marl and sandstone soils. This wine was a treat to taste over several hours and maintained it's freshness and energy into the second day. Notes of lemon verbena, and stone fruit.  Pinot Gris gives some heft and power but it's very delicate and round. Riesling provides straight acidity and melon fruit. This is a great example of a natural wine that is first and foremost complex and terroir-driven. The detail of it's lack of filtration or sulfur addition is important and noteworthy of course, but it does not define the wine or predict how complete and well-made it is. -EL

Mann, Albert 2019 Alsace Gewurztraminer Grand Cru Furstentum VV

A great site for Gewurztraminer, expressed beautifully (dry)  by Domaine Albert Mann in the excellent 2019 vintage. We love the vineyard description by Vins d'Alsace "The Kaysersberg valley, protected from the winds, welcomes the Furstentum hillside in its bosom. With a south-south-west exposure, it’s an island of Mediterranean calcicolous vegetation. The brown, limestone soil is pebbly, skeletal and porous with outcrops of bedrock. These are marl-limestone-sandstone from the Middle Jurassic period, covered at the end with Tertiary conglomerates. It’s a steep slope (37%) which optimizes the sun on a soil which accumulates heat and water. These are privileged conditions to make great wine. Furstentum was already cited in 1330 in the inventory of wines belonging to the Basel convent.  A wine which ages well, Furstentum has great finesse and remarkable aromatic weight."

Mann, Albert 2019 Alsace Grand Cru Winek-Schlossberg Pinot Gris

I am nothing if not a proponent of #AWATDT (Alsatian Wine All The Damn Time!). And this fabulous bottle of Albert Mann 2019 Wineck-Schlossberg Grand Cru Pinot Gris is doing nothing to disabuse me of that notion. There’s a lot of confusion about Alsatian wine—pointy bottle: it’s sweet right?— which I won’t clear this up with this tasting note (short answer: sometimes). But in this case this is decidedly dry and also textured, mineral, and trés complex; just the thing for brown (and orange) food season! The nose offers aromas of dried flowers, rose water, pink salt, and peach skin. The palate is dry, but shows its ripeness with pretty stone fruit and pear nectar character and a bit of glycerol, underlain by a pungently salty mineral core, a bit more iodine than fleur de sel. The finish is long and layered balancing floral character with is sapid, earthy core. This is brilliant with roasted honeynut squash and Vichy carrots, not to mention pan-roasted pork chop, but this will sing with turkey, not to mention Peking duck  Well worth a look. John McIlwain