Alsace 2022 Reds: Continuing Their Trajectory

BY ANNE KREBIEHL MW&nbsp;|&nbsp;MAY 07, 2024It
turns out that wild boars have a predilection for Grenache. They devoured all
of Eddy Leiber-Faller’s fruit in 2022. And yes, you are reading an Alsace
report, where the chief red grape is Pinot Noir, of course. The Grenache was grafted
over on a small parcel of Riesling vines in the granitic soils of the Schlossberg
Grand Cru. This would have been the first fruit from these new grafts had it
not been for those picky marauders (who will never eat Riesling, which is far
too tart for their liking). Apparently, they have quite a weakness for
Gewurztraminer, too. Who can blame them? Leiber-Faller intends to put up an
electrified fence.<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1715031547204-Stormy+spring+clouds+paint+a+moody+yet+vibrant+light+across+Grand+Cru+Hengst+-+one+of+the+first+grands+crus+approved+for+Pinot+Noir+in+Alsace_copy+%281%29.jpg">Stormy spring clouds paint a moody yet vibrant light across Grand Cru Hengst - one of the first grands crus approved for Pinot Noir in Alsace. The Rise and Rise of Pinot Noir The
latest figures from the CIVA, the Comité Interprofessionnel des Vins
d'Alsace, state that Pinot Noir now accounts for 13% of total Alsace
plantings—2,011 hectares. In 2021, that figure was 1,745 hectares—11% of
plantings. There is market demand for the variety; all of the region’s growers
echo this. Séverine Schlumberger reports planting four further hectares of
Pinot Noir in Grand Cru Saering, also deciding to grub up Riesling and Gewurztraminer
in the Bollenberg. Now, the only two varieties Schlumberger grows on this
limestone site are Pinot Noir and Muscat. Frédéric Hugel says: “In the past
five years, we have doubled our sales of the Classic Pinot Noir.” Christian
Beyer of Domaine Emile Beyer is planting more Pinot Noir in the Sundel parcel
of Grand Cru Pfersigberg in Eguisheim. Antoine Sorg (of Domaine Bruno Sorg,
also in Eguisheim) notes: “Each time we take out a parcel of Riesling or
Gewurztraminer on the plain, we replant with Pinot Noir.” Pinot Noir ripens
early and is better suited to the site than Riesling and more in demand than Gewurztraminer.
Charles Sparr of Domaine Amélie &amp; Charles Sparr in Wettolsheim believes that
by the end of this decade, Pinot Noir will account for 30-40% of Alsace
production.

Since
Gewurztraminer also prefers richer soils compared to Riesling, it is not
surprising to find Pinot Noir on such richer sites of marl, clay and limestone
with more topsoil cover – but it must be noted that Pinot Noir does work on
granite, too. When vinified carefully, granite-grown Pinot Noirs can have a translucent,
stony, red-fruited tenderness and a more austere character than limestone- or
marl-grown Pinot Noirs, which might easily blend into a line-up of Burgundies.
Lovers of Pinot Noir will know that Pinot can shine on various soils – while
acknowledging that heavenly marriage between this grape variety and limestone –
which in Alsace can be both from the Jurassic period, as in Burgundy, or
Triassic.<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1715031699283-Brothers+Thomas+%28left%29+and+Jean+Daniel+%28right%29+Boeckel+in+their+tasting+room+in+Mittelbergheim_copy+%281%29.jpg">Brothers Thomas (left) and Jean-Daniel&nbsp;(right) Boeckel in their tasting room in Mittelbergheim. Changing Paradigms Many
of the 2022 Pinot Noirs are uncharacteristically dark in color and show
sumptuous flavors, often of black cherry. Both Melanie Pfister in Dahlenheim
and Paul Fuchs in Riquewihr note that determining the harvest date was crucial to
retaining freshness in Pinot Noir in 2022. I am pleased to say that, while the fruit
flavors are plush and tannins ripe, I did not taste a single jammy 2022 Pinot
Noir at the domaines I visited.

Given
the varying release rhythms of the estates, other producers presented the 2021
vintage. Pinot Noir, with its inherent susceptibility to rot, was a challenge
in this damp year plagued by mildew, and yields took a hit. Marine Claude at
Kirrenbourg noted that, while she usually produces 4,000 bottles of Cuvée
Mathieu, in 2021, that figure was just 1,800. The 2021s lack the opulence of
the 2020s. As a function of that, Jacky Barthelmé of Domaine Albert Mann included
less whole-bunch fruit in his ferments and decided not to use any new oak for his
elegant and fine-boned 2021 Pinot Noirs. At Domaine Weinbach, they did not
produce a 2021 Pinot Noir Jardin aux Oiseaux, but the 2021 Pinot Noir from the Furstentum
Grand Cru (the first ever from the domaine) is a graceful marvel. 

Two
thousand twenty-one and 2022 represent polar opposites that played into the
hands of some styles more than others. What is telling, though, is that most of
the Pinot Noir producers I visited are in active pursuit of a new paradigm. Jean-Frédéric
Hugel says, “It seems like we spent the last 30 years striving for power in
Pinot Noir, and now that we have it, we crave lightness.” Mathieu Deiss believes
that red wines have evolved the most at Domaine Marcel Deiss. He notes that, for
many years, his father wanted to prove that Alsace was capable of making “real
red wine,” meaning wines with color and extraction. “This is no longer the case,
and now there is a place for elegance.” The wines prove his point.<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1715031720086-The+Clos+de+la+Faille+planted+by+Domaine+Albert+Mann+above+the+Grand+Cru+Hengst+where+limestone+meets+Triassic+sandstone_copy.jpg">The Clos de la Faille vineyard was planted by Domaine Albert Mann above the Grand Cru Hengst where limestone meets Triassic sandstone. Grand Cru Vorbourg: Speak Now or Forever Hold Your Peace Veronique
and Thomas Muré in Rouffach excitedly report that the INAO has provisionally
approved Grand Cru status for Pinot Noir in Grand Cru Vorbourg. Provisional
approval means that anyone can still object to this but would have to have done
so by the 1st of March 2024. No objections have been received, but the news of
this third grand cru approved for Pinot Noir can only be made public once the
notice appears in the French government’s Journal officiel. When I note
that this process, which started in 2011, took long enough, Muré says: “Yes,
about 45 years. Veronique and I have battled for this because of the work our
father did.” The Murés will be able to label their Pinot Noirs from Vorbourg
and their Clos Saint Landelin as Grand Cru from the 2024 vintage onwards—a cause
for celebration. This follows the Grand Crus of Hengst in Wintzenheim on marly,
Triassic limestone and Kirchberg de Barr in Barr, on Jurassic limestone, which
were the first to achieve this status for Pinot Noir with the 2023 vintage. The
Kirchberg is still emblematic of Gewurztraminer, but 10% of its surface is now
planted to Pinot Noir. Vorbourg is also on Jurassic limestone. I expect further
Grand Crus will follow, but do not hold your breath. This will take decades. In
the meantime, however, we will have Grand Cru-level wines in our glasses, even
if the labels cannot say so.<img alt="" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/images.vinous.com/uploads%2F1715031758521-Pierre+Gassmann+in+his+grand+showroom+filled+with+every+geological+formation+to+be+found+at+his+estate_copy.jpg">Pierre Gassmann in his grand showroom filled with every geological formation to be found at his estate. 

I
tasted the wines for this report during estate
visits in January 2024.© 2024, Vinous. No portion of this article may be copied, shared or re-distributed without prior consent from Vinous. Doing so is not only a violation of our copyright, but also threatens the survival of independent wine criticism.<hr> You Might Also Enjoy<a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/alsace-2022-whites-a-lucky-escape-apr-2024">Alsace 2022 Whites – A Lucky Escape</a>,&nbsp;Anne Krebiehl MW, April 2024 <div><div></div></div><div><div><a target="_blank" href="https://vinous.com/articles/alsace-2020s-and-2021s-just-like-janus-apr-2023">Alsace 2020s and 2021s: Just like Janus</a>, Anne Krebiehl MW, April 2023</div></div>

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