Zind-Humbrecht | Alsace | Gewürztraminer Hengst Grand Cru | 2017 | 750ml | bio

Description

Product description for Zind-Humbrecht Gewürztraminer Hengst Grand Cru 2017 (bio)

Christoph Raffelt: On the palate, the Grand Cru Hengst is incredibly dense, long, and deep, yet perfectly balanced between generous fruit and spice on the one hand, and the freshness and minerality that the wine carries within itself on the other. Plenty of yellow stone fruit is present here, as are ginger, cardamom, curry, licorice, and bitter orange. The wine has a silky texture, an almost oily consistency, and a zesty finish. It is a wine for decades to come.

Wine Information

Vintage The 2017 vintage will go down in the history of this winery. For Olivier Humbrecht, it is one of the three best vintages since the winery was founded in 1959. However, this time frost and hail limited the average harvest to less than 20 hl/ha. After an early bud break, two cold spells with sub-zero temperatures on April 21 and 22 exposed even more sheltered areas to frost. An unusually icy east wind killed vines in vineyards like the Herrenweg de Turckheim, which had never suffered a frost in the 60 years that Olivier’s father had witnessed. A hailstorm in the Brand vineyard fortunately had no major consequences. Midsummer was hot, August milder, and the harvest began on August 29 with Pinot Gris Roche Roulée, followed by terroirs such as Rotenberg, Heimbourg, Goldert, etc. A light rain on September 2 accelerated ripening. The Rieslings were harvested from September 11 onwards, and the harvest was completed with Rangen, Hengst, and Clos Jebsal on September 26. Only Clos Jebsal showed minor signs of botrytis. Vineyard The Gewurztraminer comes from very old plots of the Grand Cru Hengst in Wintzenheim. The first parcel was acquired by Emile Zind in 1948. The second, possibly planted as early as 1920, was purchased in 1978. More important than age, however, is the selection of plants, especially in comparison to what can be found in modern clones. Gewurztraminer and Hengst form a unique organism. As proof of this, the parcels later planted with young clones have already been repurposed. The clones were unable to produce a great wine. Fermentation The wine has 62 g/l of residual sugar with 2.5 g of acidity and 3.8 pH. The harvest was 21 hl/ha.

Colour

Golden yellow

Nose

The residual sugar, intensity, depth and tension of the Gewurztraminer from the Grand Cru Hengst vineyard in Wintzenheim are noticeable even in the aroma. It feels like a wine for the cooler seasons. Initially, there are some notes of quince, pumpkin, and fennel, before increasingly more yellow stone fruit and orange marmalade, cinnamon, gingerbread, beeswax, saffron, anise, and pepper emerge. A very fine, barely perceptible hint of botrytis becomes apparent as the temperature increases. Overall, however, the Gewurztraminer Hengst is pure, clear, and full of finesse.

Palate

On the palate, the Grand Cru Hengst is incredibly dense, long, and deep, yet perfectly balanced between generous fruit and spice on the one hand, and the freshness and minerality that the wine carries within itself on the other. Plenty of yellow stone fruit is present here, as are ginger, cardamom, curry, licorice, and bitter orange. The wine is silky in texture, almost oily in consistency, and zesty on the finish. It is a wine for decades to come.

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Keywords: Zind-Humbrecht Gewürztraminer Hengst Grand Cru 2017 bio Alsace France

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