VDF ALS.GC.BR.RI
by Kei Shiogai
Vin de France
Decoded, the name reads: Alsace Grand Cru Brand Riesling. Brand, in Turckheim, is one of Alsace's most historic Grand Crus - an old regional saying names it alongside just two other hills as the best in the province - known for Riesling with real finesse rather than the weight Alsace sometimes leans on. Why Burgundy's only Japanese winemaker is quietly bottling an Alsace Grand Cru under humble Vin de France rather than the Alsace Grand Cru appellation itself isn't something we could confirm - possibly a question of appellation rights rather than a style choice.
Vintages
- 2021
A genuinely difficult growing season - record April frost, the wettest spring in nearly fifty years - rescued by a dry, sunny September that let Riesling in particular finish beautifully: concentrated, high in acid, low in alcohol. Yields were the smallest since 1945, but what came in is some of the most vivid, precise Riesling the region has made in years.