Alsace is absolutely stunning. For anyone who hasn’t been, find an excuse and go. You’ve got the steep Vosges Mountains right next to the Rhine River basin, which leads to stunning natural scenery, old school Franco-Germanic architecture making it look like a Disney set, and of course a load of fantastic wines!
One of the nicest things for the novice wine drinker when it comes to Alsace is that it’s one of the only AOCs in France (that’s Appellation Contrôlée, the named set rules for wine production in an area in France) that actually uses the grape variety on the label!! Thank heavens for that!
All those times you’ve heard yourself mutter “I don’t like Chardonnay, I’ll have a bottle of Chablis instead” or “old world Sauvignon Blanc is rubbish, I’ll stick with Sancerre”? Well how you meant to know til you know? Well not in Alsace boys and girls!
The German labeling influence means that you get what it says on the bottle. The big grapes round here are Riesling, Pinot Gris, Muscat, and Gewurztraminer, but our New Wine This Week, Pinot Blanc, is still holding it’s own in the vineyards. And there’s no mistaking it, proud as you like “Alsace Pinot Blanc” on the label!
Cheers
Other Posts in NWTW Week 44:
