Technical presentation
| Bottling : | September 2010 |
|---|---|
| Acquired alcohol : | 12.5° |
| Residual sugar : | 8.4 g/l |
| Total acidity : | 3.8 g/l H2S04 |
| pH : | 3.3 |
| Yield : | 50 hl/ha |
| Optimum tasting : | 2011-2026+ |
| Average age of vines : | 26 years |
| Terroir : | Grand Cru Rangen de Thann Clos Saint Urbain |
| Sweetness index : | 2 |
| Soil : | Sedimentary volcanic rocks (Tuffs & Grauwake), South facing, Very steep slope |
Description of the wine Riesling Thann 2009
All our vineyards in the village of Thann are located in the Rangen! However, this poor steep volcanic hillside gives a hard time to the young vines. These vines, used for this wine, were planted between 1978 and 1986, after my father Leonard purchased this Clos. Depending on the vintage characteristics, we can either declassify completely or keep them aside in a village Thann bottling, if we have enough to make a full cask, as it was the case in 2009. A quick comparison with the old vines, the real Rangen, shows how important it is for the vines to explore the soil as deep as possible. Nevertheless, this wine was made from beautiful grapes, nicely ripe and harvested very healthy. A relatively fast fermentation made a wine almost dry.
Tasting notes
2/2011: the nose shows the volcanic origin: stony aromas, flint, some Riesling mineral character… The palate is already quite open and shows a pleasant and enjoyable structure. The vintage sunny influence brings a slight exotic touch. The finish is really dry’ish and perhaps Indice 1 would have been chosen if the acidity would have been slightly higher. It is an open wine offering early pleasures.
The Clos Saint Urbain, Grand Cru Rangen from Thann
The Rangen de Thann is the most southerly of the Alsace vineyards. In his book « Where Alsace wines ripen », Henry Riegert writes: « from the Middle Ages those wines which ripen on the Rangen hillside figure amongst the most famous growths of the whole vineyard region ». The Grand Cru Rangen de Thann, is situated at the exit of the valley, overlooking the village of Thann with the river Thur passing at the foot of the slope.