Alsace Wine Guide: Grapes, Appellations & Producers

Cooler north

Tip · Alsace is one of the few French regions to label by variety — a legacy of its German-influenced history.

Value pick

Domaine Ostertag 'Les Jardins' Riesling · ~$35

Biodynamic, precise Riesling from a cult grower — serious Alsace without the Grand Cru markup.

Collector pick

Trimbach 'Clos Ste Hune' Riesling · ~$300 · 2015

Arguably the greatest dry Riesling in France — released late and built to age for decades.

Warmer south · Grand Cru core

Soil: Complex mosaic — granite, limestone, volcanic, schist on steep Vosges foothills.
Style: The richest, most powerful whites; the bulk of the Grands Crus.
Top sites: Star Grands Crus: Rangen, Schlossberg, Hengst, Brand.
Vintages: 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021
Producers

Tip · Trimbach's Clos Ste Hune is many critics' pick for France's greatest dry Riesling.

Value pick

Domaine Weinbach 'Cuvée Théo' Riesling · ~$45

A great-name domaine's village bottling: the estate's purity and energy at an approachable price.

Collector pick

Domaine Weinbach 'Schlossberg' Grand Cru Riesling · ~$90 · 2017

Grand Cru Riesling from a revered domaine — pure, powerful and long-lived.

Four varieties for Grand Cru

Tip · Sweetness clues: Vendanges Tardives (VT) = late-harvest; Sélection de Grains Nobles (SGN) = botrytised.

Value pick

Albert Boxler Pinot Gris · ~$40

Smoky, weighty, faintly honeyed — one of Alsace's finest growers, well under his Grand Cru wines.

Collector pick

Zind-Humbrecht 'Rangen de Thann Clos St Urbain' Pinot Gris · ~$110 · 2016

Volcanic Grand Cru from a biodynamic legend — a profound, age-worthy Pinot Gris.