Country: France
Region: Wolxheim, Alsace
Appellation: Appellation Alsace Contrôlée
Grape variety: 100% Gewurztraminer
Style: White
ABV: 16% by vol.
Yield: 25ha/hl
Terroir: Shell limestone
Average age of vines: 35+ years
Farming: Dry-farmed, Fukuoka method. Certified organic.
Harvest: By hand
Vinification: Direct press of select whole clusters using gentle pneumatic press. Spontaneous fermentation with indigenous yeasts. No fining. No filtration.
Aging: 8+ months in Alsatian foudre
Sulfur added: None
Notes: The Muschelkalk—German for shell-bearing limestone—is a sequence of sedimentary rock strata stretching through central and western Europe. This Middle Triassic (240 to 230 million years) deposit originally formed in a land-locked sea, and its lenticular banks contain a plethora of fossil shells, found on the surface or subsurface. The vines of this particular parcel, like many of the domaine, are surrounded by woodland; thus Bruno terms it “the marine within the forest.”
Apricot jam and gingerbread on the nose. Full-bodied and complex, with salivating spice and rounded bitterness matched with fleshy tropical fruit notes. Slight residual sugar at finish. Food wine, to accompany aromatic vegetable, spiced dishes and wild meats.