Alsace: The 2016s & Late-Released 2015s

BY IAN D'AGATA | APRIL 19, 2018

A Very Long List of Varieties and Terroirs

Alsace’s combination of multiple grape varieties, a climate ideally suited to viticulture and unusually complex geology enables this remarkably picturesque region to make world-class wines in just about every vintage. The wines of Alesia were highly regarded at least as early as the 7th century. It is noteworthy that even a thousand-plus years ago, there appears to have been a clear understanding of the importance of site and grape variety in Alsace. For example, the wines of the Mambourg and the Hengst were well known in the 8th and 9th centuries respectively; other grand crus such as the Zoztenberg and the Goldert have long been renowned for their high-quality wines from specific varieties (Sylvaner and Muscat, in these two instances). That sort of history goes a long way toward explaining today’s Alsatian wines. The region offers a larger number of vinous interpretations of specific vineyards and varieties than does any other place in the world, yielding a truly dizzying array of wines.

Mambourg, one of the greatest Gewürztraminer vineyards in the world

Certainly, readers aren’t likely to come across another region with as many winemakers who all seem to share a fixation with making as many different wines as possible from myriad plots of vines and different cultivars. Even apparently minimal changes in slope gradient or soil composition spark the inborn appreciation of terroir that Alsatians harbor in spades, and thus many wineries offer multiple bottlings of Riesling, Pinot Gris and Gewürztraminer, not to mention a number of sparkling wines (called Crémants, made by secondary fermentation in the bottle in the manner of Champagne) and sweet late-harvest examples ('Vendanges Tardives' or 'Séléctions de Grains Nobles'). It follows that every new Alsace vintage offers wine lovers a panoply of mesmerizingly different wines that speak of the grape varieties from which they are made and the land they are from, not to mention the people who make them. 

The dry wines for which Alsace is best known are made from a number of grapes, the most important of which are Riesling, Pinot Gris, Gewürztraminer, Muscat (most often blends of two different Muscat varieties: Muscat Ottonel for its perfume and Muscat d’Alsace – the Moscato Bianco of Italy – for backbone) and Pinot Noir. Over the last two decades Alsatian Pinot Noirs have improved dramatically, and thanks to a combination of climate change and producer perseverance, many of these wines are downright exciting today – in some cases remarkably Burgundian – but much less expensive.

Another wine of note in Alsace is Pinot Blanc, which is most often a blend of two grapes, true Pinot Blanc and Auxerrois, with the latter almost always making up the lion’s share of the blend. This can lead to the awkward situation of Alsatian wines that are labeled Pinot Blanc but in fact are made wholly from Auxerrois. Alsace Sylvaner is a delightful and much underrated wine. While they have long been out of fashion, these bright, delicious, crisp wines can match perfectly with many vegetable and fish dishes. Most importantly, Sylvaner has the advantage of reaching physiological maturity at reasonable levels of grape sugar. So, these wines typically clock in at a modest 12% alcohol, while Riesling and Gewürztraminer grapes generally need to reach 14% potential alcohol before they reach physiological ripeness.