Winemaker Notes
Savor as an aperitif or with simple dishes that showcase the wine.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A fabulous 2014 with amazing aromas of spices, light cheese and walnuts. Full body, dried lemons, limes, stones and saltiness. Pumice as well and a layered, velvety texture. A joy to taste. Made from biodynamically grown grapes. Drink now.
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Wine Enthusiast
What to mention first? A hint of mossy earth, chamomile tisane, Cox Orange Pippin apples or lemon zest? All of these aromas dance on the nose. They are still totally shy on the taut, dry and concentrated palate. For now, it is mossy citrus that is most aromatic while rich fruit still needs to unfurl. This strikes a note of utter purity, of something soaring and bright. Right now this is totally brisk, invigorating and refreshing but its true colors won't show for some time. Drink 2020–2035.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
2014 was "the most expensive harvest ever" in the history of Zind-Humbrecht, "double the average," stated Oliver Humbrecht, who yielded only 26.5 hectoliters per hectare in the grand cru vineyards and 42.5 hectoliters per hectare in the generic Alsace AOC. Humbrecht's intensely golden-colored 2014 Riesling Clos Saint-Urbain Rangen de Thann is still reductive and untamed after all those years and reminiscent of game as well as crushed volcanic stones (or ashes), salts, herbs and lush peaches. This is a full-bodied, intense and very mineral or rocky Rangen with flesh and tension but also a long, saline, finely tannic and, some would even say, austere finish. The 2014 doesn't show any signs of the fruit fly drosophila suzukii that contaminated so many pink-colored grapes in late August and September with acid rot, which caused severe selections in the vineyards. Rating: 94+
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Wine & Spirits
A muscular riesling from the volcanic soils of Rangen, this is golden in color and in its super-concentrated flavors of peach. There’s salty warmth to the wine’s distinctive minerality, captured here in a youthfully powerful wine that feels graceful and elegant. It finishes with cool, clean purity of fruit. The relatively high elevation (1,150 to 1,475 feet above sea level) and proximity to the Vosges Mountains makes this a late-ripening site, while the steep, south-facing slope facilitates that slow ripening. It’s a pretty glorious 2014.
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Wine Spectator
An aromatic, elegant version, featuring gingersnap and spice accents to the flavors of poached peach and pear fruit, orchard blossom, smoke and saline. Lithe and focused by firm acidity, with a lingering, racy finish. Drink now through 2024.
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.