ZIND-HUMBRECHT
Riesling Alsace Grand Cru Brand Vielles Vignes
2011
- Organic
- Biodynamic
About this winery
Olivier Humbrecht is one of the world's most renowned winegrowers. He is a Master of Wine and has been described by Robert Parker as the greatest white winemaker on earth. Yet he is very soft spoken, humble, and self-deprecating, which makes him perfectly suited to his assumed role as a global ambassador of wine. He is a champion of terroir, biodynamic farming principles, and non-interventionist winemaking, whose family have been winegrowers in Alsace for 12 generations (since 1620). He is...
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Production notes
The Brand Grand Cru, followed by the Herrenweg vineyard at its bottom, is our most precocious Riesling vineyard (first to bud-break, flowering). Granite soil warms up very quickly. The growth of a vine is directly related to the temperature at root level, which explains the precocity of this site. In a vintage as early ripening as 2011, we never hoped to be able to achieve a dry Riesling Brand. Despite a very high ripeness, a perfect healthy crop and ideal weather probably allowed the wild yeasts to ferment this Brand to almost the last grams of sugar. It took a long time! But the job was done.
Tasting notes
One would expect this wine to be a fruit bomb, maybe in a few years, but for the moment it displays a complex nose, quite discreet, with wet stones and ripe fruits. There is intensity there, so there is no hiding that this wine will also be long and lingering on the palate. The dry finish is superb, as this vintage has a natural roundness and velvety character. No doubt this wine will age without any problem.