Zind Humbrecht – Riesling Clos Windsbuhl – 2016

Description

Exploring France leads to the discovery of fascinating regions especially in terms of food and wine where time seems to have stood still in the past with families active for centuries. When one speaks of the domaine of Zind Humbrecht one is undoubtedly referring to the most important and historic winery in Alsace. A true wine frontier on the border with Germany with strong German cultural influence that makes it different from other areas, a mountainous strip of land bordered by the Vosges with extensive valleys, cool and temperate climates that allow high-altitude viticulture and the production of world-class white wines. The earliest records of these winemakers date back to 1620, already merchants and grape growers proved to be true examples, their recent history begins in 1959 in Turckheim when there was the union of the Zind and Humbrecht families. It was the turning point, a common vision of consistently elevated quality with husband and wife Leonard and Genevieve Humbrecht together their inherited properties in the area’s most important Grand Cru vineyards. They pioneered biodynamic techniques, introduced very low yielding parcellar divisions then performing very slow vinifications of a minimum of 6-8 months with the gradual abandonment of sugar addition so as to achieve pure expressiveness. Today they boast a rich and limited selection of wines in demand worldwide due in particular to their exceptional aging due to the complexity of the soils on which they grow the main varieties such as Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Pinot Grigio, Pinot Blanc and Muscat. Their philosophy aims to enhance the Terroir and the primordiality of the grapes by making use of both modern technologies and traditional methods with the use of very old large barrels for aging by releasing specific labels late in the market. Certainly solid foundations that continue to be sophisticated in the best way moved by a centuries-old passion.