Gewurztraminer Sélection de Grains Nobles 2007

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Powerful, floral with honey and spices notes. Very rich on the palate. Great length and freshness…

Appellation:

Alsace with the mention "Selection de Grains Nobles"

Locality:

Vineyard at the North of Ribeauvillé, within the area named Gruenspiel.

Type of soil:

The Louis SIPP parcels of land are situated in the geological fracture zone of Ribeauvillé. They constitute a territory which is highly geologically fragmented. The Gewurztraminer which produced this wine classified as a "Sélection de Grains Nobles", grow in a plot of land on a hillside, with deep soil rich in clay.

There are several reasons why Botrytis regularly takes hold on the grapes of this plot of land:

• the vines are old and not vigorous. Being less vigorous the yield is much lower, and so the vines are not very vulnerable to diseases. This allow the production of grapes which are healthy and very ripe. This is the type of environment which is ideal for the development of Botrytis in the form of "pourriture noble" ("noble rot").
  - the soils are heavy, deep and rich in clay. The vines are supplied with water even in the driest years, which facilitates good maturation of the grapes.
  - there is a very humid area at the foot of the hill, which causes morning dew. Humidity in the mornings is one of the conditions necessary for the development of Botrytis. The land's south-facing aspect ensures that the dew is rapidly dried out by the sun over the course of the morning. It is the alternation between periods of damp in the morning and dry in the afternoon which allows the fungus to develop in its "noble" form.
  - as in all the soils around Ribeauvillé, this one contains traces of chalk. This chalk allows the wine to retain a good level of acidity, which in turn aids the ageing process, and the production of balance, whilst preventing the wine from becoming too gentle. All of these highly localised characteristics make this hillside a producer of excellent syrupy wines.
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• Wine character:

• This wine boasts a beautiful deep golden-yellow colour. Its bouquet is fine, powerful, and floral, offering hints of violet, spices and litchis. It is syrupy on the palate and has a delicate freshness due to the chalky patches in the soil. There is much fullness and elegance in its aromas.
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• Tips for consuming:

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• This Gewurztraminer may be consumed on a variety of occasions, such as at receptions or other social events. It will suffice even without food. Of course, foie gras does accompany it superbly, and sweet or chocolate desserts accompany it well too.
  It may be consumed immediately, but it does benefit greatly from conservation for several extra years, so as to allow it to express its full richness and the complexity of its aromas.
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• The 2007 vintage:

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• The 2007 vintage is very special and original. After a hot spring, the growing cycle of the vines started very early. As a consequence, the flowering took place around May 25. This date, totally exceptional when considering the historical data on the Alsatian vineyard, is another strong illustration of the effects of the global warming on our life. On the other hand the summer months have been the coldest and rainiest over the past 50 years. The vines lost progressively the advance they had in the development so that the vegetative cycle increased to values well above those of a normal year (125 à 130 days in 2007 against 105 in a normal year. We started gently to pick the grapes on September 4th and finished on October 5th. The weather conditions during the harvest have been exceptionally warm (temperatures regularly well above 22°C) and dry, so that we did not have to hurry up and could wait for the perfect maturity of each type of grape and each single vineyard. After the fresh summer with the cool night temperatures which preserved very well the acidity in the grapes the wines present an interesting structure. The long vegetative cycle brought us strong and complex aromatic characters. And finally the warm autumn allowed the grapes to reach the optimum maturity level. With no doubt 2007 will be a wonderful year for those who managed to cope with the totally original conditions of this year.
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• Special note:

• In order to be awarded the label "Sélection de Grains Nobles", which was defined by the ministerial ruling of 01.03.1984, an Alsace wine must fulfil the following conditions:
  - it must be the product of a single vine species, and must be sold with mention of the species on the label
  - it must be sold with a mention of the vintage
  - it must originate in a plot of growing land which has already been declared to the INAO
  - it must be made from harvested grapes of one of the authorised species which are recognised to produce at least the minimum level of natural richness, as defined by the ruling (these species are the Gewurztraminer, Tokay Pinot Gris, Riesling and Muscat)
  - it must not have undergone chaptalization
  - it must have been accepted for the "appellation" of Alsace in the sector of bottled wines, after chemical and organoleptic analysis.
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Vinification:

Manual harvest of berries attacked by noble rot only. Smooth and long pressing of the grapes. Traditional vinification process with temperature control.