Technical presentation
| Bottling : | January 2020 |
|---|---|
| Acquired alcohol : | 13.3° |
| Residual sugar : | 5.6 g/l |
| Total acidity : | 4.7 g/l H2SO4 (7.2 g/l Tartrique) |
| pH : | 3.20 |
| Yield : | 41 hl/ha |
| Optimum tasting : | 2025-2038 |
| Average age of vines : | 37 years |
| Terroir : | Rotenberg |
| Sweetness index : | 1 |
| Soil : | Red limestone Oligociene period |
Description of the wine Pinot Gris Rotenberg 2018
The Rotenberg vineyard was one of my grand father Zind favourite place. It may be a steep west facing vineyard with lots of rocks on top of the red limestone mother rock, but it is located in a peaceful setting, looking directly a the beautiful Vosges forest and in close proximity of nature. The first vineyard planted there was Auxerrois and Sylvaner, then cam the Pinot-Gris and the last Sylvaner on the estate was pulled out in 1992 and replaced by Pinot-Gris. This splendid and discreet vineyard has developed an absolute capacity to produce beautiful Pinot-Gris. The grapes stay small, the yields are always very reasonable, and the ripening process is slow. The Rotenberg wines combine serious structure with good acidity and high dry extract. This vineyard has the capacity to produce anything from very dry to very sweet style of wines, depending on the date of harvest and presence of botrytis. Since harvests are earlier and earlier, we mostly produced dry wines on this vineyard in the recent vintages. The 2018 grapes were healthy, kept a beautiful acidity and despite a relatively low pH for this grape, the fermentation went on to the end. Like all dry Pinot-Gris on the estate today, we keep them 18 months on the full lees before bottling.
Tasting notes
04/2020 : Intense yellow colour. The nose releases a sensation of purity. It is complex, bright, showing white fruits aromas. Some wines are hard to describe only using aromatic descriptor. The Rotenberg 2018 is well bred, characterful. The palate is harmonious and long. The lees ageing and vineyard influence are strong: there is concentration, salinity but also a nice velvety touch from the elevage. The Rotenberg has class and is also able to deliver fantastic dry wines.
The Rotenberg of Wintzenheim
The Rotenberg is the summit of the hill whose south facing slopes make up the Grand Cru Hengst. The steep slopes of Rotenberg are west facing and look onto the Haut Landsbourg Chateau. The point where the slope turns towards the north is the start of a small lieu-dit called Hinterberg, within the Rotenberg.