Riesling (Alsace)

Tucked in the northeast corner of France on the west bank of the Rhine sits the tiny region of Alsace. With its population center in Strasbourg, Alsace sits closer not just to Germany than any major city in France, but also to Switzerland and Luxembourg and perhaps even Liechtenstein and Belgium. While we can mostly communicate today in French, many of the locals have stuck to their Alsatian tongue, probably closer to Swiss German than anything else.

In the world of French wine, the Alsace Appellation Originee Controllee (AOC) is unique. Go anywhere else in France. Look at the label on a bottle of wine. What do you see? You see the AOC and perhaps a classification such as Grand Cru or Deuxieme Cru, but never the name of a grape. It's simply common knowledge for those who care that a red wine labeled Bourgogne will be Pinot Noir while a white wine will be Chardonnay.

In Alsace, there are four noble grapes, all white, and any may be included on the label: Gewurtzraminer, Muscat, Pinot Gris, and of course, the noblest of them all, Riesling. But, as we look at the labels before us, we would swear that all of the estates producing the wine were German.

Alsace has been a battleground since the days of the Holy Roman Empire, but in more modern times, its country has been each of France, Germany, and Switzerland. From the Franco-Prussian War in the 1860s and 1870s until the end of World War I, it was German land. Since then, however, other than during the German takeover late in World War II, Alsace has been part of France.

Let's drink some wine now.

In front of us, we see three separate styles: dry, off-dry (Vendange Tardive (late harvest in English), and Selection de Grains Noble (SGN) for the botrytized wines affected by noble rot. We'll try all of them today.

Not surprisingly, each of the wines are quite reflective of their terroir. This is the old world way of winemaking. The dry Rieslings today are unoaked. The acidity has a particular pizzazz to it (likely from the schist, granite and limestone predominant in the local soil) as we are enveloped in notes of white flower, lemon, tart pear, green apple, and baking spice. They tend to be low in alcohol content and are both inexpensive and food-friendly. Drink your dry Alsatian Riesling with asparagus, sashimi, and fish tacos, or have it at your Sunday brunch with a traditional lox (smoked salmon) meal.

Moving now to the off-dry, these have been produced from overripe grapes, those that have gone past their prime to the eye and rather than having their expected plumpness and vibrancy have shriveled. These wines still maintain their notably acidity, so serve them at 5-7C (41-44F). This should bring out more of the spices and allow it to handle similarly spicy food including Thai and Sichuan. For a real treat, though, savor your VT Riesling with apple pie fresh from the oven.

The SGN wines are necessarily made from grapes that have fallen prey to botrytis or noble rot. By law, they must be at least 16.5% alcohol (no idea where that seemingly random number came from) and have a minimum of 276 grams per liter of residual sugar. [Note: if you like your Alsatian wines more alcoholic and sweeter, SGN Gewurtzraminer and Pinot Gris must have even higher alcohol content and more residual sugar.]

The great SGN Rieslings of Alsace produce flavors all their own. As we sip the incredibly viscous elixir, we get hints of quince, saffron, apricot, really racy lime, jasmine, and green orchard fruits. Match the fruit on your cheesecake to fit the wine. Serve it with pate de foie gras. Or, pour it to savor with the traditional French pastry, le macaron.