Riesling Heimbourg 2018

A dry Riesling of aristocratic poise: round in flow, invigorating in acidity, with a sweet-sour interplay that makes it demanding rather than merely charming. Its true greatness will only reveal itself in a few years.

The Heimbourg is a small, roughly 9-hectare vineyard on a south-west-facing slope overlooking Turckheim and the Munster valley. The soil sits thin over the Oligocene bedrock, whose high limestone and iron content gives it its reddish colour. Valley winds keep the grapes healthy, while the sun-drenched site accelerates ripening considerably: harvest must be timed precisely to avoid both over-ripeness and excess residual sugar. 2018 brought perfect ripeness with very good acidity.

Pure Riesling, planted in the mid-1990s. Olivier Humbrecht, the first Frenchman to hold the title Master of Wine, farms 42 hectares biodynamically; he converted the first five hectares in 1996. Yields are 30 to 40 hectolitres per hectare, and the wines spend at least six months on the lees and one to two years in the cellar before leaving the estate. 12.5% vol.

On the nose, ripe apple, fig, dried apricot and orange, framed by floral notes and fresh herbs; with air, spice notes and a pronounced minerality emerge. On the palate, vibrant acidity, saline undertones and a distinctly spicy finish.

With pan-fried red mullet with artichoke-orange vegetables, crispy roasted duck with spiced sauce and apricot dumplings, or, for a vegetarian option, carrot-chia dumplings with wild herb salad.

Those drinking the wine now should decant it for several hours and serve it in a sufficiently large glass; it continues to gain expression even several days after opening. The Humbrecht family has been growing wine since 1620, and since 2019 Pierre Émile Humbrecht has joined as the eleventh generation.