Rediscovering Alsace - All Stores

The greatest thing I ever heard about Alsace is that it's French food in German proportions. And indeed that's true - it's one of the regions of the world that sports the greatest number of Michelin 3-star restaurants.

Despite its immense culinary fame, though, over the years Alsace has seen a decrease in sales of wine to the United States and, in particular, to us here in Wisconsin. Given our strong Germanic heritage and our love of wines that fit this style of cuisine, how can this be? 

There are many reasons and we need a tasting to explore them all! Despite being varietally labeled, every producer makes a dizzying amount of different wines; styles go from dry to sweet, sparkling to still, and over the years ripeness and its concomitant sweetness have been changing dramatically. Further, it's only since the 1960s that Alsace joined the AOC system of France. Indeed, even when they joined, it was fraught with internal disagreements about how to apply those laws. By the mid-2000s, I think that Alsace slightly lost its way, making it difficult for consumers to know what to expect from their wine purchases.

That is unfortunate as the wines are absolutely brilliant. If you are a lover of Sauvignon Blanc, Sancerre, white Burgundy,  Gruner Veltliner, crisp domestic Chardonnay or even Semillon, these wines should be right in your wheelhouse and offer you some of the best food pairing options that can be had–everything from white asparagus in a gorgeously silky Mornay sauce to brats fired up on the grill with plenty of bold mustard. So while you may not be drinking Alsace right now, please join us for an epic tasting of some of the most extraordinary wines in the region to this day.

Wines to be tasted (this list from a pervious year, new wines ASAP):

Bonus for arriving on time: Lucien Albrecht Brut $21.99

Flight one:
2022 Domaine Schoech Cotes d'Ammeschwier $24.99
2020 Trimbach Riesling $29.99
2018 Domaine Ostertag Riesling Grand Cru Heissenberg $64.99

Flight two:
2020 Leon Boesch Pinot Blanc Labane
2015 Lucien Albrecht Pinot Gris Pfingstberg $49.99
2020 Domaine Zind Humbrecht Calcaire Gewurztraminer $49.99

Mid-game bonus:
2020 Leon Boech Pinot Noir Les Jardins $34.99

Flight Three:
2021 Jean Baptiste Adam Riesling "les Natures"  $21.99
2018 Jean Baptiste Adam Riesling Kaefferkopf Vieilles Vignes Grand Cru - $54.99
2018 Domaine Stertage Heissenberg Riesling $64.99