To my knowledge, the Humbrechts’ 2007 Gewurztraminer Rangen Clos Saint Urbain sets a new record for the estate at 16.4% alcohol, in effect following the trajectory of recent vintages in Rangen, though 22 grams of residual sugar in this instance may simply indicate that it will be up to the yeasts to say “when.” The acidity here is high for the variety, as has been noted in numerous wines of the vintage, especially those accentuated by noble rot. Lavender, rose petal, celery root, and whiffs of wood smoke on the nose are attractive and entirely predictable, if backed by a faintly spirituous sense of nose-tweaking intensity. In the mouth, though, this catches fire – and not in a good way – sweeping across the palate, and leaving behind charred, smoked meat, and high-toned notes of banana oil, citrus oil, and distilled pit fruits, and peat. The old “drink-it-before-it-drinks-you” line is insufficient to express the relentless, virtually incendiary ferocity, eye watering smokiness and searing brightness on display here. Ok, it’s done drunk me – now what? I’d be lying if I said I don’t want to see what becomes of it after a few years in bottle. ”After the experience of 2003,” remarks Olivier Humbrecht with an eye to his 2007s, “I’m never going to complain about having and extra gram or two of acidity.” In fact, Humbrecht considers 2007 ideal in nearly every respect, having permitted the grower the luxury of picking under optimum conditions for each grape variety and style. The fruit was completely healthy, insists Humbrecht, “you could walk through the vineyards for half an hour and fine one spoiled berry,” … except, of course, where the rot was noble! This year’s generally dry-tasting, relatively low-alcohol, high acid, high-extract Rieslings are not always the most youthfully approachable or winsome in style, but the best are profound; whereas Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer ran to extremities of potential alcohol, even though the harvest was finished before mid-October. Far fewer wines went through malo-lactic transformation here from 2007 than usual – the pHs were often so low they proved inhospitable to the necessary bacteria. As for 2006, it’s clear that this is a year to test the meddle of any grower, and it is therefore not surprising that Zind-Humbrecht was among the estates to demonstrate that excellence and even excitement were not ruled out by the weather. Furthermore, he arrived at an average 2006 yield virtually identical to that of 2005. “Of course,” asserts Humbrecht, “quality in 2006 depended on how you handle your vineyards and your vines the whole year through. It was a vintage where, if you made a mistake in the vineyards, you got slapped pretty hard at harvest time, unlike 2007 where if you made a mistake, nature was forgiving.” The completion of fermentations in 2007 was spread over even more months than usual, often with late bottling; frequently with no racking; and my notes are based both on tastings from bottle early this year (sometimes referencing the wine’s performance from cask) and in a few instances solely on tastings from cask. Two 2007 Pinot Gris “Trie Speciale” – from Clos Windsbuhl and Clos Jebsal – were not even wine yet last I visited, and will in any case not be released for at least another year.Importer: The Sorting Table, Napa, CA; tel. (415) 491-4724
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