My wife and I had a small contingent of Chicago members over to the house Saturday night for an Alsatian wine dinner. It was a little payback for those members who had invited us over to their homes and cooked dinner for us in the past. In attendance were the wives of Otis, Blue Oval & R2-D2. They brought their spouses with them.

My wife made a fantastic meal matching the wines. I'm anxious to see what others thought (especially on the duck). She pulled together some authentic Alsatian dishes to match the 16 wines which were opened. Here is her menu:

Appetizers
Bucheron goat cheese (France)
St. Marcellin cheese (France)
Double Cream Brie (France)
Beaujolais sausage
Escargot en brioche

First Course
Radicchio, pear & fennel salad with anise orange dressing

Main Course
Roast duck with caraway seeds- She ordered these from Maple Leaf Farms in Indiana and used her Mothers recipe
Choucroute
Spaetzle
Sweet carrots & dill celery
Homemade bread

Dessert
Crème brulee & fresh raspberries
Icewine Truffles

I tried to choose the wines for this dinner to get a representative sample of winemakers, grape varieties, vineyard sites, vintages and styles. Here is some general information about what we had:

Winemakers- Zind-Humbrecht and Domaine Weinbach are generally considered the top 2 producers in Alsace. However, Robert Parker placed 10 producers in his top “5 star” category (outstanding). Six producers from this 5 star category were represented at our tasting. Besides Zind-Humbrecht and Weinbach, fine examples of wines from Trimbach, Albert Mann, Marcel Deiss and Schoffit were present. Robert Parker also recently published a list of the 50 greatest wines made in Alsace year in and year out. We were fortunate to have 5 of the wines on that list in this tasting. I also included a few value minded producers who make some excellent wines at reasonable prices as well.

Grape Varieties- There are 6 main white grape varietals grown in Alsace (Gewurztraminer, Muscat, Pinot Blanc, Riesling, Sylvaner and Tokay-Pinot Gris). 4 of those varietals made an appearance at our tasting (although Pinot Blanc was only represented by a Cremant d'Alsace).

Vineyards- Alsace, like Burgundy, has adopted a Grand Cru system. Historically, the best sites have been labelled Grand Crus. However, it is not a perfect system. Politics has resulted in over 50 vineyards receiving Grand Cru status. In addition, all monopole sites, like Clos Ste. Hune (often called the Romanee-Conti of Alsace), are excluded despite a reputation which surpasses many Grand Crus. Of the most prestigious Grand Cru sites, wines from the famous Furstentum, Hengst, Rangen and Sonnenglanz vineyards were represented at the dinner.

Vintages- Alsatian whites age remarkably well. I was fortunate to find wines from the 1989 and 1990 vintages (the 2 most renowned vintages in the last 20 years). The 1994, 1995, 1998, 2000 and 2001 vintages also gave producers outstanding growing conditions and had wines represented at our tasting. 1996, 1997 and 1999 provided only slightly less successful growing conditions. However, top wines (like the ones at this dinner) still shown through in these years. With wines from 10 of the 13 vintages from 1989-2001 at this tasting, we had some good examples to demonstrate how well these wines age (or in the case of the Kuentz-Bas, how poorly they age).

Styles- I tried to put together a variety of styles. We had 1 sparkling Cremant d'Alsace, 10 “dry” wines, 3 VT's and 2 SGN's. As expected, many of the "dry" wines were not dry at all and had considerable residual sugar (I thought the Mann Gewurz was the sweetest of all but the SGN's). Wines labeled Vendange Tardive are made from fully ripened grapes and as a result often have high alcohol levels. They can be vinified dry or sweet. Selection de Grains Nobles (SGN) on the other hand are always sweet and meant to be dessert wines. These last 2 categories often represent the pinnacle of Alsatian winemaking.

Here is a list of the wines we tried:

NV Lucien Albrecht Cremant d'Alsace Brut

2001 Gustave Lorentz TPG Reserve (375ml)
1990 Kuentz-Bas TPG Reserve Personelle (375ml)
2001 Domaine Weinbach Riesling Cuvee Theo
1996 Marcel Deiss TPG Bergheim
2000 Albert Mann Gewurztraminer Furstentum Vielles Vignes
1995 Josmeyer Riesling L'Exception
1990 Josmeyer Riesling Grand Cru Hengst
1994 Trimbach Riesling Clos Ste. Hune
1997 Trimbach Riesling Cuvee Frederic Emile
1999 Zind Humbrecht Reisling Heimbourg

1998 Schoffit Riesling Rangen de Than Clos St.Theobald VT
1997 Domaine Julien Meyer TPG Zellberg VT (500ml)
1995 Marcel Deiss Gewurztraminer Burg VT (500ml)

1989 Josmeyer TPG Grand Cru Hengst SGN (375ml)
2000 Bott-Geyl Sonnenglanz SGN Gewurz (500ml)

We did not vote for a WOTN but I think that the favorite was the Trimbach Clos Ste. Hune. I will post notes on each of these wines soon.

VM

[This message was edited by Vino Me on Feb 09, 2004 at 02:39 PM.]

VM and Mrs. VM,
Thank you for the invitation to sample some excellent Alsatian food and wine. Having never visited the region, nor having never dived into Alsatian wine, this seemed to be a good introduction into the region.

As for the food, first, I found the radicchio to be a little overwhelming with bitterness/astringency. But, I really like the pear/fennel/orange-anis dressing. I'd perhaps swap the radicchio with something less overwhelming on the taste buds.

Secondly, the duck was incredible ... excellently prepared and worth the extra time it took to cook. I think I'm going to ask Gentleman Otis to pull the meat off the bones for me next time. I filled up fast on the food, perhaps because I was drinking too much. Loved the sweet carrots! Great side dish. And of course, just the mere presence of creme brulee puts a smile on my face.

Finally, the highlight of the whole evening was the vast array of Alsatian wines to sample. This list was carefully prepared by the Bargain Bandit. Both Blue Oval and I have limited experiences with Alsace and, as I mentioned earlier, this was a tremendous introduction.

The few standouts for me were:
94 Trimbach Riesling Clos St. Hune
00 Bott-Geyl Sonnenglanz SGN Gewurz
95 Josmeyer Riesling L'Exception

Thank you to everyone for making it a great evening. We'll have to return the favor very soon.

sounds like a great evening not to mention... a ton of work
You are a deserving bunch of winos in Chi-town! Mrs VM must like you
R2--I'm not a fan of radicchio either but the anise orange dressing sounds very interesting.

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"From wine what sudden friendship springs!"

I am so-o-o-o-oooo jealous! The 1989 Zind-Humbrecht single vineyard Gewurz's hooked me on Alsatian wines. I've been sucking them down ever since.

I think I got Pinot Envy hooked last week...

Congratulations on a first-class gala.

highdesertwine

PE- As you probably know, my wife put a LOT of effort into this dinner and I thought it showed. She was cooking for 2 days (many items like the homemade dressing had to made a day in advance). Her task was made even more difficult because of the light snowfall she had to shovel off the drive. I would have helped but that would just set a bad precedent.

HDW- If you like 1989 Gewurz, I have an extra bottle of 1989 Josmeyer Gewurz Grand Cru Hengst that you can have. It is not my style (too big, rich and concentrated). I'll bring it with me if we see you in May.

RD- Thanks for the compliments. It was our pleasure to host this dinner. I was impressed that your wife tried the duck.

VM

VM,

Aboslutely a first-rate production Satruday.

Lady VM surpassed herself. The duck was crispy, tender and delicious. The choucroute was reminiscent of the succulent plates of sausage and kraut we have enjoyed on the Route du Vin in Alsace.

And thanks for putting together an amazing lineup of wines from one of my very favorite regions. So many Grand Crus across so many vintages in so many styles. A memorable vinuous tour indeed! Loved the tasting sheet, too. Very well-crafted.

I'll add my notes to the TN threads shortly. My favorites were the Clos Ste. Hune, Josmeyer l'Exception, Mann Gewurz, and Bott-Geyl Sonnenglanz.

Thanks again for inviting us! Mrs. O had a great time, too.

Cheers,

Otis

To put it mildly: ""

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Free Winona!

Otis/Boss Hog,

My wife and I are glad you and Daisy Duke had a good time. We enjoyed entertaining you.

VM

HDW - I second that.