Winemaker Notes
Pairs well with seafood, shellfish, pork chops, goat cheese or sushi.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Funky notions of yeast still cloud the nose. The palate gives us tense, concentrated lemon and tangerine zest at first but you feel that there is more strength, almost raw force, at the core of this that still needs to develop and work out its balance. This is a big wine, energetic and dry, intense and generous but not yet fully fledged. Drinking it now would rob it of its as of yet untapped essence. For now it is lemon purity that holds sway but there will be so much more. Cellar from 2022–2035, at least.
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Wine Spectator
A vibrant white, crackling with a light saber of acidity that defines the flavors of nectarine, melon, grated ginger and star anise, revealing a tangy, saline-tinged undertow. Finely knit and long, with the fruit and mineral notes echoing on the finish.
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James Suckling
Very complex, cool nose with a lot of herbal notes including tarragon. This has a unique personality and a lot of elegance, but it needs a couple more years in the bottle to reveal all its riches. Long, cool and delicate finish. Made from biodynamic grapes. Ecocert certified
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Intense yellow in color, the 2015 Riesling Clos Windsbuhl is deep, clear, pure, ripe and rich on the nose, with smoky and toasty (speck) aromas and lovely fresh lemon flavors. Coming from pure, thinner limestone soils, this is a tension-filled, pure and salty, but also rich and lush Riesling with great tension. Still closed but highly elegant, full of finesse and tension, this Riesling is provided with great length and aging potential. The 2015 Windsbuhl is going to be bottled with 12.4 grams of residual sugar and 12.3% alcohol. Fine tannins and grip here. Gorgeous, but keep it for ten years or more. So pure, so salty, so fresh and finessed. Tasted from the cask (on the fine lees already) in February 2017. To be bottled some days later.
Riesling possesses a remarkable ability to reflect the character of wherever it is grown while still maintaining its identity. A regal variety of incredible purity and precision, this versatile grape can be just as enjoyable dry or sweet, young or old, still or sparkling and can age longer than nearly any other white variety. Somm Secret—Given how difficult it is to discern the level of sweetness in a Riesling from the label, here are some clues to find the dry ones. First, look for the world “trocken.” (“Halbtrocken” or “feinherb” mean off-dry.) Also a higher abv usually indicates a drier Riesling.
Small but mighty, this picturesque region in northeastern France is renowned for its white wines produced by passionate families whose winemaking roots span generations and even centuries. Nestled between the Vosges Mountains and the Rhine River, Alsace benefits from a sunny, dry climate and a long growing season. It is one of the most geologically diverse regions in the world — one of the many reasons why Alsace rocks!
Alsace wines include dry, mineral-driven Riesling, earthy Pinot Gris, refreshing Pinot Blanc, exuberant Gewurztraminer, elegant Pinot Noir, and more. From traditional-method sparkling wines to easy-drinking AOC Alsace, to complex Grand Cru bottlings from 51 distinct sites, and rich, late harvest wines, Alsace produces a wine for every occasion. Most Alsace wines are single-varietal bottlings and are labeled with the grape name. The region is also one of the greenest wine-producing areas in France, with 36% of its vineyard area certified organic.
Riesling, the region’s calling card, is dry, fresh and floral in its youth, developing complex mineral and flint character with age. Gewurztraminer is known for its signature spice and lychee aromatics. Pinot Gris is prized for its combination of crisp acidity and savory spice as well as ripe stone fruit flavors. Pinot Blanc is an affable food partner or porch sipper. Pinot Noir, the only red grape in AOC Alsace, is now authorized in three Grand Cru areas and is also used for Crémant d’Alsace sparkling rosé. Any bottle you choose will offer deliciousness, pleasure and value that is unprecedented in other wine regions.