Riesling Rangen de Thann Clos-Saint-Urbain Grand Cru 2014
A dry Riesling from the Clos-Saint-Urbain in the Grand Cru Rangen de Thann, the vineyard with a 68-degree slope above the small town of Thann.
CHF 105.00
Prices in CHF, including customs duty and all import charges, plus shipping CHF 15 (free from 12 bottles or CHF 300) — no further charges on delivery.
Available for Switzerland
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About this wine
Character
A Riesling of great density that does not open up immediately. Powerful and compact on first impression, it only reveals its many layers after extended aeration, carried by a tension of salt and acidity that clearly marks it as a wine for the cellar.
Terroir and origin
The Rangen de Thann rises above the small town of Thann and, with a 68-degree slope, is the steepest vineyard site in Alsace. On 5.5 hectares of volcanic rock, Domaine Zind-Humbrecht cultivates the Clos-Saint-Urbain here, again using horses on the steepest parcels.
Grape variety and vinification
100 percent Riesling, 12.5 percent alcohol by volume, vinified dry. Olivier Humbrecht, the first Frenchman to hold the title of Master of Wine, converted the estate to biodynamic farming starting in 1996. Yields stand at 30 to 40 hectolitres per hectare, the wine rests on the lees for at least six months, and no vintage leaves the cellar before one to two years of ageing.
On the palate
On the nose, apricot, orange and orange marmalade, along with fragrant blossoms and honey, framed by tree bark, yarrow and damp earth, overlaid by a cool-seeming, smoky minerality. On the palate, plenty of yellow fruit, a saline vein and a precise acidity that challenges the palate.
Food pairings
Salmon under a salsify crust with creamed spinach on wild rice, quail wrapped in pasta with foie gras, white truffle sauce and Jerusalem artichoke vegetables, or puff pastry pie filled with smoked sweetbreads and wild mushrooms.
Special features
Anyone opening the bottle now should decant it for several hours and choose a sufficiently large glass; over the course of a few days, the wine gains further expression. It reveals its full substance after further years in the cellar.
