Gewurztraminer GROSSI LAUE 2010

Grossi Laüe signifies the finest vineyards in Alsace dialect and represents an equivalent to the German Grosses Gewächs or the Burgundian Grand Cru.

Presentation

Quick View
Great classic Gewurztraminer which will gain in complexity and spiciness for 8 years or more. Its suave and long complex aftertaste will make it the ideal partner to strong cheeses and spicy dishes.
The vintage
The winter of 2010 was particularly harsh, with more than 30 days below zero, and temperatures dropped as far as -17°C. Budburst on 8 April was early, but flowering which began on 10 June took almost 3 weeks to finish due to cool temperatures. July was exceptionally hot and sunny, before cold, damp and rainy weather set in throughout August and into September. Ideal weather conditions returned on 11 September, with not a drop of rain for 6 weeks. Our harvest began on 27 September and ended on 26 October. Maturity reached record levels, the highest for 50 years, with good acidity, similar to 1996. Crop size was 30% below average, and even lower for Gewurztraminer.
Superb wines with magnificent balance, purity and fruit. 2010 is a great classic vintage, with good ageing potential.
In the vineyard
Produced in a selection of the oldest plots of the Hugel estate in the heart of the grand cru Sporen made up of Lias clay-marl, decalcified on the surface, exceptionally rich in phosphoric acid
Winemaking
The grapes are taken in small tubs to the presses, which are filled by gravity, without any pumping or other mechanical intervention.
After pressing, the must is decanted for a few hours, then fermented in temperature-controlled vats (at 18 to 24°C). The wine is racked just once, before natural clarification during the course of the winter. The following spring, the wine is lightly filtered just before bottling, and the bottles are then aged extensively in our cellars until released for sale.
The whole production of this wine is closed with DIAM the cork without the risk of cork taint.
Varietal
Gewürztraminer : 100%
Specifications
Alcohol content : : 14° % vol.
Residual Sugar : : 16,3 g/l
Tartaric acidity : : 5.62 g/l
pH : : 3.55
Age of vines : : 30 years old
Yield : : 45 hl/ha hL/ha

Advice

Video
Tasting notes by Serge Dubs, World's Best Sommelier 1989
Nature can sometimes be unexpectedly generous to winegrowers. In Alsace, 2010 was a superb vintage of well balanced wines with body, beautiful harmony, freshness and perfect grip.

The colour is intense, with good depth, attractively lively and bright, with pale green, straw and lemon yellow hints. The wine is velvety and clings tightly to the glass.

The bouquet is frank, light and airy, elegant, fresh and distinguished, nicely perfumed and aromatic, yet not heavy or invasive. All the nuances of a young Gewurztrzaminer are displayed deftly, without over-ripeness : flowers (white rose, jasmine, frangipane, almond blossom, lily...) and fruit (pineapple, mango, passion fruit, kumbawa, bergamot...).

On the palate it is a fine example of harmony and balance, an impressively subtle wine, softly vigourous, velvety, rich and generous yet with an elegant, fresh finish. A little touch of ripe acidity is an invitation to succomb to the charms of this wine, whose finish is as perfumed as its bouquet.

This is a serious wine, foursquare and authentic, that lays bare the art of the winemaker who knows how to let the grapes express, naturally, their quality and character.

A wine to enjoy as soon as possible, although it can be kept 10 to 12 years. It has all the qualities of the 2009 but in a different style, where sophistication is the key word.

Serve it at 8°C for any occasion, on its own, as an aperitif, between meals, or with a terrine of duck foie gras, with game or with exotic, mildly spicy dishes, curry, curcuma, tandoori. Enjoy it with desserts, fruit tarts, cakes or with blue cheeses.