Our vendor told us a new batch of Alsatians had just come into Atlanta so we jumped on the offering without hesitation. It seemed like a natural, our favorite white wines at just the right time of year. What could be better!
Bernhard is distributed by one of the finer wholesalers in Atlanta so taking that as a selling point, we bought a couple mixed cases. Some varieties were familiar to us, as in, we've tasted and enjoyed them in the past, while others were new to us. As we said, we trust this particular vendor and Alsatian whites, in general, are golden in our opinion.
Bernhard is a family-owned, organically-farmed operation that was established in 1802. The wine industry had a long history there before the Bernhards purchased their property but their longevity speaks to their success.
You can marvel at Alsatian white wines in the same way you can admire just a few California wineries. Those are the properties that do everything well. For California wineries only two things can explain their providence: They either did their homework super well or they lucked out with their location AND they planted the right varieties in the right places. Old Europe has had centuries to work that out. Kudos to the Californians who have done it on the fly.
Alsace is different from the rest of France with their varietal labels, which we are sure has to do with the geo-politics of being adjacent to Germany. In our order we received a Riesling, Muscat and two Gewurztraminers along with a couple blends. Bernhard also grows Sylvaner and Pinot Blanc, which we are sure go into the blends, and they grow Pinot Noir. While we love good pinot, that one doesn't interest us here.
Gewurztraminer is one of the great white grapes of the world and Alsace has the best there is. Considering the long winemaking history of Alsace, it only makes sense that vineyards would be rated on their quality. In fact, Alsace delineated Grand Cru vineyards in the ninth century. Today just four percent of Alsatian vineyards are rated as Grand Cru. One of the two Gewurztraminers we now have is a Grand Cru Vineyard product and it is priced very fairly.
So it's August and we have a month of summer to go. Come and get some Alsatians!
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