Technical presentation
| Bottling : | February 2003 |
|---|---|
| Acquired alcohol : | 12.9 ° |
| Residual sugar : | 9 g/l |
| Total acidity : | 5.3 g/l H2S04 |
| pH : | 3.3 |
| Yield : | 55 hl/ha |
| Average age of vines : | 19 years |
| Sweetness index : | 2 |
| Format : | 75 cl |
Description of the wine Zind 2001
This is our classic blend of Auxerois (50%), Pinot Blanc (15%) and Chardonnay (35%), from the usual vineyards of Rotenberg, Herrenweg and Clos Windsbuhl. Unfortunately, the chardonnay grape is only allowed for the production of sparkling wines in Alsace and is now definitely forbidden for the production of still wines. Our choice was either to pull out our vines (no way!), make sparkling wine (bof), sell the base wine or grapes to someone making sparkling wine (sell Windsbuhl grapes?!) or declassify everything into the Vin de Table category. Having planted chardonnay in 1989 in the Windsbuhl in order to increase the complexity and ageing potential of our blend, we chose the last solution. Because there are no Vin de Pays classification in Alsace, I can only use the very basic Vin de Table classification, which forbids us to write the vintage, grape varieties and any indication of origin on the label. We chose to name the wine ‘ZIND’.
Tasting notes
01/2003 : The 2001 vintage produced a rich wine, high in maturity. Like most of the 2001s, the grapes were harvested very healthy with a good balance in acidity. The Rotenberg (auxerrois) vineyard was the smallest production. In general, the auxerrois grape variety did very well in 2001, resulting in good ripeness with the necessary balance in acidity (which is rare). The wine has a strong nutty mineral flavour, very intense on the nose at this young age. The palate is powerful, but balanced with a crisp acidity and long aftertaste. Even if this wine never saw new oak (only classic old casks), it seems that the calcareous vineyards and extensive lees contact give some toasty character to this wine. A wine for plenty of occasions, from fish to white meat.
