When it comes to French wines, the term Grand Cru has a magical connotation. But just how magical the name of a particular Grand Cru vineyard and the wines named after it really are depends enormously on the region. Both in terms of reputation and to your pocketbook, it makes a huge difference if a Grand Cru white wine is from Burgundy or Alsace. Let me give a few concrete examples.
The world’s most expensive dry white wine is the Montrachet Grand Cru from Domaine Leflaive in Burgundy, which Wine Searcher prices at $12,750 for the 2015 vintage (the latest available) and $19,590 for the 2014. In contrast, even the most expensive Grand Cru wines from Alsace are those from the Rangen Grand Cru site in the commune of Thann, produced by Domaine Zind Humbrecht, and they lie at just under $100 for the 2019 vintage. That’s a more than a hundred-fold price difference!
The question is whether that price difference is reflected in the wine quality, and for us the answer is … not necessarily. Sure, the best Grand Cru dry whites from Burgundy are amazing wines, and for sommeliers and collectors around Planet Wine they remain the benchmark for the chardonnay grape. The Montrachet Grand Cru is an example of how enormous global demand for a very limited production combined with high quality results in stratospheric prices for certain Burgundian Grand Cru wines.
For Alsace, demand is almost never as great, but what about quality? Recently, we tasted the 2018 and 2019 vintages of the Rangen Grand Cru wines from Zind Humbrecht (each year they make a trio of Grand Cru whites from the Rangen: a riesling, a pinot gris and a gewurztraminer) and rated them every bit as highly as the best Grand Cru whites of Burgundy. This situation creates a golden opportunity for savvy consumers, and our Top 10 is designed to help you make the most of it.
There’s another important reason to take these wines very seriously. Many consumers wonder what the “mineral character” that sommeliers and wine critics often talk about actually tastes like. Alsace Grand Cru are an ideal way to find out.
The hashtag #alsacerocks is a marketing tool for the region’s wines, but it fits, because the best Alsace Grand Cru have intense notes of flint, chalk, wet stones and dry earth. This, together with the combination of generosity and freshness typical for Alsace whites, makes them a special category for us.
“A true Grand Cru is a singularity of character with consistently high quality,” said Marie Zusslin, from Domaine Valentin Zusslin. “That’s why my idea is to show the uniqueness of each site.” Her Riesling Alsace Grand Cru Pfingstberg 2017 is a magnificent expression of this idea.
“Alsace has enormous geological diversity within a small area, and each Grand Cru has its own identity,” Eric Kientzler of the Kientzler estate in Ribeauville told me. “For example, the wines from our three riesling Grand Crus are very different, although the Osterberg, Kirchberg de Ribeauville and Geisberg sites are neighbors.” With its combination of elegance and minerality, his Riesling Alsace Grand Cru Kirchberg de Ribeauville 2018 is an ideal introduction to the Alsace Grand Cru category.
“Some years we declassify quite a bit of wine from our Grand Cru sites,” said Véronique Muré, from the Muré estate. “It’s our responsibility to maintain both the quality and the special character of each site.” The high ratings we have given to all recent releases of Muré’s Clos Saint Landelin shows how seriously she and her winemaker brother, Thomas, take this policy.
Since 1935 the Muré family has owned the entire Clos St. Landelin within the Grand Cru Vorbourg, and currently they have nine hectares planted. That’s an exceptionally large holding for an Alsace Grand Cru site.
Alsace Grand Cru are nearly always varietal whites, with the variety named on the label: gewurztraminer, muscat, pinot gris or riesling. Riesling is the most successful grape for Alsace Grand Cru in the market because these wines are always dry, and their bright acidity accentuates this.
For us the Domaine Weinbach Riesling Alsace Grand Cru Schlossberg Cuvée Ste. Catherine is a near-perfect example of an Alsace Grand Cru, combining mineral subtlety with great concentration and length. Both the 2018 and 2019 vintages of this wine are amazing, and together they pushed it into first place in our Alsace Grand Cru Top 10.
At the other end of the scale is gewurztraminer Grand Cru, which ranges from medium-dry to medium-sweet and is generally low in acidity. “Gewurztraminer Grand Cru are the most difficult to sell, because they are the most difficult to use,” commented Olivier Humbrecht MW of Domaine Zind-Humbrecht.
You might think France would be the main market for such wines, but as Zusslin explained, this is not the case. “Alsace Grand Cru are much easier to sell in Singapore, Hong Kong, America or Germany than in France,” she said.
We suspect this lack of visibility in France’s top restaurants is one thing pulling the brakes on the image of Alsace Grand Crus.
Some suggest that the Grand Crus of Burgundy have a better image, because they are much more ancient Alsace Grand Cru. However, the facts don’t give this theory much support. Nearly all the Grand Cru appellations of Burgundy were created in 1937-38, but because of World War II, labels bearing these designations were not widely visible in the market until the late 1940s. That’s a short time ago in wine history.
ALSACE 2019: a look at more than 500 wines tasted by James Suckling, Senior Editor Nick Stock and Contributing Editor Jack Suckling.
The first Grand Cru in Alsace was the Schlossberg of Kaysersberg, a kind of test balloon raised for the category back in 1975. Then followed a list of 24 new Grand Crus in 1983, followed by a further 25 in 1992, then, finally, the Kaefferkopf was added in 2007 to make a total of 51. Together they have a total area of around 850 hectares, or 5.5% of the total vineyard area. However, because yields for Alsace Grand Cru are lower than for regional wines, the percentage of the region’s wine production they account for is much lower.
The “large” number of the Alsace Grand Cru is also often cited as the reason for consumer confusion about them, but there are a total of 562 different Premier Cru (or 1er Cru) vineyard site designations in Burgundy. If you add in the much smaller number of Grand Cru designations, then the number tops 600. Only a handful of experts are familiar with all of them!
One genuine source of confusion is the fact that all the Alsace Grand Cru vineyards have Germanic names. The Alsatian language is an Alemannic dialect of German and is closely related to Swiss German. Alsace has changed hands between Germany and France five times since 1681 and when it returned to France in 1945, French finally became the official language.
Although pinot noir now accounts for 11% of all vineyard plantings in Alsace, with an upward trend, there is still no Grand Cru for reds in the region. However, if you taste pinot noirs like the wonderful Clos Saint Landelin 2018 from Muré, then you have to ask why. For bureaucratic reasons the introduction of the first Alsace Grand Crus for pinot noir reds has been pushed back another year.
The other big change hanging in the air is the introduction of the Alsace Premier Category – 160 applications have been accepted by the INAO, and these must now go through the rigorous approval process. That means there must be a vertical tasting for each site undertaken by the same seven-person professional jury. The problem is that the jury is only allowed to undertake one tasting per day and must stay together for all 160 tastings, a process that could take many years. If one member were to die before the job is completed, all the tastings are void. So don’t expect to see Alsace Premier Cru on a label anytime soon.
Burgundy is not the Holy Land of Wine, as some fans believe, but it does have one big advantage over Alsace: the Premier and Grand Crus of Burgundy were declared before the process of creating new appellations of these kinds became so extremely bureaucratic. In spite of this and other problems in Alsace – like some cheap and mediocre wines bearing Grand Cru designations – we are convinced the introduction of Alsace Grand Cru was the decisive development in the region during the late 20th century. It lay the foundations for most of the region’s contemporary wines that we rate highest.
These 10 wines that exemplify the greatness of Alsace Grand Cru are all either currently in the market or about to appear on the market:
1) Domaine Weinbach Riesling Alsace Grand Cru Schlossberg Cuvée Ste Catherine 2019 (99 points)
With a total area of 80.3 hectares, the Schlossberg of Kaysersberg and Kientzheim is the oldest and largest of the 51 Alsace Grand Cru. For a handful of well-known producers this is their most important site for riesling, none more so than the Faller family of Domaine Weinbach. This steep and rocky hillside is named after the ruined castle halfway up it. The soil is granitic and sandy with poor water retention, which makes for wines with a staggering finesse even at high levels of ripeness and concentration. We recommend the slightly creamier 2018 vintage of this wine every bit as much. Although the wines from the Schlossberg can be quite charming in their youth, they have great aging potential. Those of Domaine Weinbach only got better under winemaker Eddy Leiber-Faller.
2) Famille Hugel Riesling Alsace Schoelhammer 2010 (99 points)
Although the words “Grand Cru” don’t appear on the label of this wine, it comes from a single parcel within the Schoenenbourg Grand Cru site of Riquewihr. The Schoenenbourg has 53.4 hectares of vineyards and the heavy gypsum-marl soil makes the wines very slow developing, but also gives them enormous power and aging potential. That’s the reason the Schoelhammer is always released after at least a decade of aging. It was first vinified separately by the Hugel family in the 2007 vintage and is very much Jean-Frédéric Hugel’s baby. The 2010 is still very youthful for its age. Be prepared for a three-figure price tag!
3) Domaine Zind Humbrecht Pinot Gris Alsace Grand Cru Rangen de Thann Clos Saint Urbain 2019 (98 points)
Leonard Humbrecht, the father of current winemaker Olivier Humbrecht MW, was one of the pioneers of the Grand Cru system in Alsace. He collected vineyards in the steep slopes of Alsace before their greatness was widely recognized, and he was derided by some when he acquired the Clos Saint Urbain section of the 22-hectare Rangen in the late 1970s. Then it was awarded Grand Cru status in 1983! This very powerful but precisely balanced pinot gris is very smoky and spicy, reflecting the precipitously sleep south-facing site with volcanic soil (schist and grauwacke). As usual for this grape there are a few grams of grape sweetness, but the intense minerality balances them beautifully. This is also the most southerly vineyard in Alsace and is situated below the highest peaks of the Vosges Mountains – a combination that gives it a unique climate.
4) Trimbach Riesling Alsace Grand Cru Geisberg 2014 (98 points)
When you taste this spectacular dry riesling from what was generally a very difficult vintage it is hard to believe that back in the 1980s the Trimbach family were vocal opponents of the Grand Cru system. The Geisberg is one of the most dramatic Alsace Grand Crus: a very steep, terraced site with 8.53 hectares of vines overlooking the historic town of Ribeauville. Cultivation is entirely by hand, resulting in substantial extra production costs. Trimbach’s famous dry riesling Cuvée Frédéric Emile is a blend of wines from the two neighboring Grand Crus, Kirchberg de Ribeauville and Osterberg. Anne Trimbach is the driving force behind the collection of impressive Grand Cru wines the family produces.
5) Domaine Valentin Zusslin Riesling Grand Cru Pfingstberg 2017 (98 points)
This wine makes a huge statement without tipping over into opulence or becoming monolithic. It is proof that in Alsace, dry riesling is capable of every bit as much power and depth as the white Grand Crus of Burgundy. Together, the brother and sister team of Marie and Jean Paul Zusslin have put the commune of Orschwihr and its remarkable vineyards on the map. While the Bollenberg and Clos Liebenberg sites, both potential Premier Crus, also deserve a mention, the 28.2-hectare Grand Cru Pfingtsberg is clearly the finest of them. There, the soil is a mix of sandstone and limestone, and this is perhaps the reason for the remarkable complexity of these wines.
6) Domaine Marcel Deiss Grand Cru Schoenenbourg 2017 (98 points)
There’s no varietal designation for this Grand Cru because of winemaker Jean-Michel Deiss’s policy of co-fermenting field blends of many grape varieties, but in this case the base of the blend is riesling. This is an enormously structured and concentrated wine that is only just beginning to display its riches, and as it slowly matures the hint of grape sweetness will recede ever further into the background as the profound minerality becomes more dominant. For many young winemakers in the region, Deiss’s conviction that field blends result in more complex and authentic expression of terroir (the taste of the place) has been a source of inspiration. Here is strong evidence to back up that argument. It also has one of the most beautiful labels on Planet Wine!
7) Domaine Pfister Riesling Alsace Grand Cru Engelberg 2018 (97 points)
Melanie Pfister is one of the most talented young winemakers in Alsace and since she took over the cellar from her father, Andre, in 2006 she has steadily improved the quality of the estate’s wines. This is the best wine she has ever made, and it has a stunning freshness and finesse for this extremely warm vintage. It comes from one of the most northerly Grand Cru in Alsace, the 14.8-hectare Engelberg of Dahlenheim, which lies just a short drive west of the city of Strasbourg. It’s clay-limestone soil type is quite common for the region, but the Engelberg enjoys an ideal combination of generous sunshine and cooling wind for the new climatic situation. Watch this space!
8) Muré Pinot Noir Clos Saint Landelin 2018 (96 points)
There are no red Alsace Grand Cru, but for us this qualifies as an unofficial Grand Cru, since the Clos Saint Landelin is the south-facing, terraced section of the Grand Cru Vorbourg site of Rouffach. The total area of this Grand Cru, with more than a thousand years of history, is 72.6 hectares. Veronique and Thomas pinot noirs are perfumed and silky, and you could mistake this one for a wine from one of the most famous sites of Chambolle Musigny in Burgundy! Here is a very strong argument for extending the Alsace Grand Cru system to include pinot noir.
9) Kientzler Riesling Alsace Grand Cru Kirchberg de Ribeauvillé 2018 (95 points)
This beautiful dry riesling marries considerable depth with a wonderful elegance, making it a great introduction to the Alsace Grand Cru category. You can enjoy it right away, but it should age extremely well. Winemaker Eric Kientzler believes in terroir (the taste of the place) every bit as strongly as his father, Andre, but the new wines have more grace and polish, which is like putting an ideal frame around a beautiful picture. The Kirchberg Grand Cru of Ribeauville (there is also a Kirchberg site in the commune of Barr) is rather small at just 11.4 hectares and has calcareous dolomitic marl soil.
10) Dirler-Cadé Gewurztraminer Alsace Grand Cru Saering 2018 (94 points)
This may not be one of the most imposing gewurztraminer produced in Alsace – they can be huge wines! – but it’s certainly one of the most drinkable, thanks to its unusual dry style. Dry gewurztraminer is so rare because of the grape’s combination of high sugar content and bitterness. Ferment out all that sugar and you could reach 15% plus alcohol, then the bitterness shows, but the grape is also low in acidity, so even a little unfermented sweetness can taste too much. Winemaker Jean Dirler squares that circle in this precisely balanced and intensely mineral wine. With 26.7 hectares, the Saering Grand Cru of Geubwiller has a sandy marl soil ideally suited to making elegant gewurztraminer.
– Stuart Pigott, Senior Editor
