2009 Riesling Saering Grand Cru

This is Alsace’s largest privately owned domaine, producing about 750,000 bottles annually and exporting to 60 countries. The estate owns 130 hectares, of which 7 are grand cru. Alain Freyburger has been the winemaker at Sclumberger since 1995, initially in tandem with Jean-Paul Soreb and then on his own since 2000. The estate is in the process of reassessing its products and its many vineyard sites. For example, the Schindberg is a lieu-dit but should be at least a premier cru according to Séverine Schlumberger, who currently runs the estate. She also believes that the Kitterlé is their best site but is less impressed with their parcels in the Spiegel (“of course we are happy that these vines are in a grand cru, but I wonder if ours aren’t really only premier cru in quality”). She’s happy with the wines from the Saering but thinks even more highly of the Kessler, which she feels is now making fantastic Rieslings too, not just great Gewürztraminers. Schlumberger uses only vines that are at least 15 years of age to make their grand cru bottlings.