Riesling Heimbourg 2022

Earthy and mineral on the nose, with porcini and truffle, followed with air by apple, candied citron, orange and apricot kernel as well as linden and orchard blossom. Powerful, with the components beautifully interwoven.

The Heimbourg lies in Turckheim on the south/southwest side of an Oligocene limestone hill, facing the Münster valley. A small, difficult-to-farm single vineyard of which Domaine Zind-Humbrecht owns nearly two-thirds, today planted mainly with Riesling and Pinot Gris. The soil ripens late, the exposure is sun-drenched; drought does not trouble the vines, which is why ripening progressed very quickly in 2022 and the harvest date had to be watched closely.

Pure Riesling from young vines, planted after the 2012 vintage to replace the former Gewürztraminer and farmed biodynamically from the start; they root better and deliver a quality barely inferior to that of the older vines. Fermentation proceeded very slowly but never stalled, so the wine finishes very dry at 13.5% ABV.

Razor-sharp, the wine meets the tongue with vibrant acidity, threaded through with a fine saline note. Citrus fruit and apple stand to the fore now; with age, the earthy, smoky and spicy aromas will come through more strongly.

With poached free-range egg with dried porcini and tarragon foam, smoked salmon with truffle oil and orange zest or roasted spring chicken with cinnamon and fresh almonds. When opened young, decant a day in advance and serve not too cold in large Burgundy glasses.

Olivier Humbrecht, the first Frenchman to become a Master of Wine, farms 42 hectares; since 2019 Pierre Émile Humbrecht has worked alongside him as the eleventh generation. No wine leaves the cellar before one to two years of ageing, at least six months of which on the lees, with yields of 30 to 40 hectolitres per hectare.