Here are the wines I tasted:
Tasting the stars- Riesling
We then moved on to some of the real stars of the tasting, the young Rieslings.
Riesling Cuvée Théo 2011 from Clos des Capucin. This wine is made with low yields of 35 hl/ ha (equivalent to Grand Cru Burgundy yields). This had pure crystal clear aromas of flowers and lime zest. On the palate it was focused and long, with bright, ripe lime flavours, juicy acidity and not even a hint of bitterness. Vivid, focused and delightful. A little shy at present as it is very young now but will age for 10 - 20 years. 95/100
Riesling Cuvée Théo 2010 - very low average yield 22 hl/ha.
Bright golden toned. On the nose it was just beginning to get classic Riesling notes of oil, & petrol followed by cream, wax, lanolin aromas on standing. Very concentrated and long on the palate with a saline/minerally finish. 94
Riesling Grand Cru Schlossberg 2011 - lovely honey and white peach fragrance with honey, peach, flowers & lime flavours. On the palate it had a softness mellowed by ripe yellow fruit flavours but balanced by a backbone of feisty acidity. This wine is made from the 8ha the Fallers own of the Schlossberg Grand Cru site which could be seen in the distance behind the Clos Capucin. This Grand Cru site has granite soil, very rich in minerals such as magnesium, and produces very fruity wines. All of their wines are vinified in large, old oak vats with temperature control. 94
At this point Catherine made two very pertinent remarks first that their wines were made with with "minimum intervention but constant attention" and that "Riesling is like a diamond which is polished by the terroir."
Riesling Cuvée Sainte Catherine 2010 (30% of the grapes for this wine comes from the Schlossberg Grand Cru). Pale peridot colour. Very precise clear aromas of lime juice and petrol. Very, pure and focused on the palate with vivid acidity, creamy, minerally flavours and long, long finish. Crystalline in its focus and definition. 95
Riesling Grand Cru Schlossberg Cuvée Sainte Catherine 2010 Lime oil, bees wax and peach aromas. Bone dry with very lively but ripe acidity and a long creamy, minerally finish. This wine like many at this tasting was still very young and could last 10-12 years. 95
Next came two Rieslings from the Inedit! range. This is a special wine made from 60 year old vines and from the mid-section of the slope. They use some botrytised grapes in the blend. The wines are not produced every year. Asked to characterise the Inedit! style I would say these wines are “silky textured with flavours of very ripe fruit”.
Riesling Grand Cru Schlossberg Cuvée Sainte Catherine Inedit! 2011 This wine had a potential alcohol of 15% but fermentation was stopped at 14% leaving a residual sugar of 22 g/l r/s. Pale lemon topaz. Nose of white peach, lime and some oily notes becoming herbal on standing. It has a rich off-dry impression on the palate, interwoven with smoky, Lapsang souchong tea flavours, exotic spice and ginger. It finishes dry, and is a bit like a cross between Riesling and a very focused Gewürztraminer in its range of exotic spice flavours. 95
With this wine Catherine suggested a dish they had tried at home - lobster, vanilla, & touch of lime.
They didn't produce Inedit! in 2010.
Riesling Grand Cru Schlossberg Cuvée Sainte Catherine Inedit! 2009
18 grammes residual sugar (r/s). Creamy, round medium dry impression, with a core of zesty lime and ginger flavours running through it. Very focused with a Long finish. Lovely racy acidity. 95
Other White Delights
Pinot Gris Cuvée Sainte Catherine 2010 15 g/l r/s. Pale gold colour with ginger, spice, slight earthy aromas. On the palate, a sweet initial impression with broad, round, honeyed flavours interlaced with smoke, ginger and spice.
Catherine says it gains truffle-like flavours as it matures. I found the slight earthiness off-putting but it was an exotic wine. 92+
Suggested food matches were risotto with porcini/dried mushrooms, duck or veal. I could imagine this going well with Chinese crispy duck with exotic five spice and star anise or some other curried or spicy dishes.
Catherine enthusiastically suggested another match - her special recipe for truffle sandwich. It is important to use salted butter, leave the sandwich in the fridge for 36 hours for the flavours to meld together, then heat the bread for a few minutes before serving.
Pinot Gris Altembourg 2010 The soils are a combination of sandstone, limestone and marl. 30 g/l r/s but with more acidity. Slightly earthy, honeyed, oily, heady, nose. Rich sweeter, impression on palate but more noticeable, lively acidity, better balanced overall lively, fresh. Very spicy, gingery, long. 93
Apart from their stunning dry Rieslings, the Fallers produce some of the best Gewürztraminers in the world so it was interesting to hear Catherine's views on this variety. They don't produce really dry Gewürztraminers because as a white variety it has quite a lot of tannins, so they like 10 g r/s to counteract any phenolic bitterness. Another tip is that they never de-stem when they harvest as that would generate oxidation.
Another interesting thing Catherine said was that with Gewürztraminer you don't need to concentrate the flavours. True to this belief their wines were not at all overblown or exaggerated the way Gewürztraminer can be sometimes but at the same time they were rich and concentrated, yet limpid, pure and incisive too.
Gewürztraminer Cuvée Théo 2010 Bright yellow gold. Very delicate, pure precise rose petals and gentle honey aromas. Beautifully balanced creamy, soft, honeyed, rose petal, little ginger, subtle elegant & poised. Really delightful, beautiful texture, silky with delicate aromatics, like rose-decorated fine bone china 95 +
Gewürztraminer Cuvée Laurence 2009 This had softer, more mellow, honeyed aromas. Sweeter impression, rounder, ginger spice & yellow fruits, less intense and incisive, but more curvaceous and sumptuous. 95
Suggested food match from Catherine was sautéed goose liver & kumquats.
Gewürztraminer Altenbourg 2010 This Gewürztraminer was in a more nervy and steely style, with a small thread of lime peel flavours. Sweet initially but very lively with more noticeable freshness and focus. Lighter touch. 95
Gewürztraminer Grand Cru Furstentum 40 r/s.Very exotic and richly flavoured. Honeycomb, crystalised ginger and spice. Finishes a little sweet. Big, bold flavours and lots of spice. 95
Pinot Gris Altenbourg, Vendange Tardive Trie Speciale 2009 Picked with 20% botrytis. Slightly earthy, mushrooms, heady notes from botrytised grapes on the nose. On the palate - sweet, round and honeyed with ripe yellow fruits. Softer style 93
Gewürztraminer Grand Cru Mambourg Vendanges Tardives 2010 110 g/l r/s. Very pure aromatics, Clear lime & honey. Sweet, lively, very good balance of vivid acidity and ripe yellow plum flavours with a little bitter quince flavour. Beautifully balanced wines poised between sweetness and juicy acidity 96
Gewürztraminer Grand Cru Furstentum Vendanges Tardives 98 r/s
Bright green/gold. Heady, delicate rose petal notes. Wonderful silky texture with a creamy, minerally flavours. Also beautifully balanced with a long creamy finish. Started with balanced sweetness and finished drier. 96
Riesling Grand Cru Schlossberg Selection de Grains Nobles 2006
Wow! Another beautiful wine. This had lovely mature Riesling petrol aromas interwoven with lacy, delicate lime flowers. On the palate it was both intensely sweet and mouth-wateringly juicy. Acidity - 112 R/S TA - 7.9. Round and silky with lovely ripe acidity. This wine had a very long finish and beautiful balance. 96
Gewürztraminer Altenbourg Selection de Grains Nobles 2010 145 r/s SGN 18.2 alcoholic potential 100% botrytised.
Rich, very opulent wine. Exotic candied orange peel flavours but yet restrained and focused with great depth. 96
Gewürztraminer Grand Cru Furstentum Selection de Grains Nobles 2006
Bright gold. Wow! Seamless, sweet, subtle, silky, wonderful yellow fruit and ginger spice! 96+
Pinot Gris Altenbourg Quintessence de Grains Nobles 2008 Over 22 at harvest, 10.5. Honey, ripe apples, cream, amazing texture, honeyed nose,
Quite unctuous but still vivid. Amazing sweetness & balance. Wonderful texture 97
Gewürztraminer Grand Cru Mambourg Quintessence de Grains Nobles 2008 Deep old gold, green toned. The essence of Gewürztraminer, spicy, restrained, crushed roses on the nose - heady, exuberant but beautifully poised and refined at the same time. Intense, silky, super sweet but with delicious balancing bright acidity and attractive bitter plum skin/greengage favours. Lovely, long and spicy, evenly balanced. Wonderful texture & balance of flavours.98
Susan Hulme MW |