Gewürztraminer Roche Calcaire 2023

The Gewürztraminer Roche Calcaire 2023 from Domaine Zind-Humbrecht grows on limestone soils in Alsace and shows the variety at its most taut and cool. Deep straw yellow with bright highlights. The nose is reticent at first and needs air and warmth before it reveals nutmeg blossom and clove. Only afterwards does the varietal Traminer character emerge, without ever tipping into the exuberant.

The grapes come from a small parcel near Gueberschwihr, close to the Goldert, as well as from young vines on the Grand Cru Hengst and the Clos Windsbuhl. The soils combine oolitic limestone with silicate marl, and this limestone imprint explains the subtle aromatics, less typical of the variety.

A pure Gewürztraminer from vines averaging 41 years old, with a yield of 51 hl/ha. In 2023, harvest came a little later, yet sugar levels remained moderate, resulting in this dry style. Bottled in August 2024, 14.0% ABV. Olivier Humbrecht, the first Frenchman to hold the title of Master of Wine, converted the first five hectares to biodynamic farming back in 1996.

The palate opens with spice ahead of blossom. The texture stays taut, with a fine tannic structure and firm tension in place of the oily texture typically associated with the variety. On the palate the wine reads as dry, even though close to 7 g/l residual sugar sits at the upper end of the dry spectrum. The extract-rich core carries a hint of tropical fruit, cinnamon flower, rose and pink guava, held together by a tight, powerful structure.

A Gewürztraminer that places origin above variety: the limestone reins in the aromatics and gives them contour. Domaine Zind-Humbrecht farms 42 hectares in Alsace, and extended lees contact is part of the house style.