Albert Boxler Riesling Reserve, Alsace, France

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Boxler’s 2009 Riesling Reserve smells of elder flower, sage, and apricot – to that extent Muscat-like. A smoky pungency and saline savor often found in this cuvee (typically rendered from lesser portions of the Sommerberg) serve for invigoration in a lip-smacking, bitter-edged finish. Like the corresponding Pinot Blanc Reserve, this falls short of ideal mid-palate succulence – in this instance, doubtless attributable to the stress on younger vines – but is otherwise delicious and ought to remain so for 3-4 years. Jean Boxler relates that in 2009 he picked some parcels of young wines early due to stress, then sold off the juice; and any under 15 years’ age he didn’t even bother to pick. Eventually, when he harvested his older vines and best sites, the sugar levels were the same – but not the flavors. He deftly charted a course with most of the resulting wines between alcohol and residual sugar, but to the extent it was unavoidable, sinned on the side of sweetness. From 2008, almost predictably given the track record at this address, Boxler rendered sharply focused, minerally complex, yet seductively fruit-filled wines that should prove excellent both as keepers and as partners with cuisine. Boxler compares these wines with his 2002s and finds then “definitely more interesting than the 2001s.” While most of the 2008s finished fermenting already by Christmas – which is par for the course chez Boxler – he points out that several of the extraordinary wines from the Brand lingered into spring. (For some detail on among other things Boxler’s different Riesling parcels, see my report in issue 188.)Importer: Robert Chadderdon Selections, New York, NY; tel. (212) 757-8185

From young vines in the Dudenstein sector of the Sommerberg, Boxler’s 2008 Riesling Reserve projects impressive richness – centered on white peach, nut oils, and musk – considering its vintage, backed by an oily, glycerin-rich texture, although it harbors around the same 13% alcohol as the corresponding “basic” bottling. The mineral dimensions and dynamism of the latter wine are missing, although besides compensatory richness and polish we are treated to a soothing succulent finish. “Just wait ten years and you’ll arrive at a reversal of stature” between these two, claims Jean Boxler. I was certainly imaging drinking this Reserve within the next decade. Jean Boxler relates that in 2009 he picked some parcels of young wines early due to stress, then sold off the juice; and any under 15 years’ age he didn’t even bother to pick. Eventually, when he harvested his older vines and best sites, the sugar levels were the same – but not the flavors. He deftly charted a course with most of the resulting wines between alcohol and residual sugar, but to the extent it was unavoidable, sinned on the side of sweetness. From 2008, almost predictably given the track record at this address, Boxler rendered sharply focused, minerally complex, yet seductively fruit-filled wines that should prove excellent both as keepers and as partners with cuisine. Boxler compares these wines with his 2002s and finds then “definitely more interesting than the 2001s.” While most of the 2008s finished fermenting already by Christmas – which is par for the course chez Boxler – he points out that several of the extraordinary wines from the Brand lingered into spring. (For some detail on among other things Boxler’s different Riesling parcels, see my report in issue 188.)Importer: Robert Chadderdon Selections, New York, NY; tel. (212) 757-8185

From vines in the Sommerberg, Boxler’s 2007 Riesling Reserve smells smoky in a Pinot Gris-like way as well as of citrus oils. It mingles grapefruit and honey on a glossy, subtly oily palate and finishes with bitter fruit pit and citrus rind notes as well as crushed stone, the merest hint of sweetness helping to steer it from austerity in what is certainly a finish of impressive sheer grip. I would be inclined to enjoy this over the next 2-3 years. Jean Boxler emphasizes the contrast between one of the earliest and hastiest harvest ever at his family’s estate – “just three days after I finished bottling the 2005s, and then every day, including Sunday” – in order to salvage clean fruit in 2006; and the protracted harvest of 2007. “In fact,” he explains, “I started in 2006 with the intention of harvesting grapes for cremant, but they were already too ripe.” Thanks to meticulous vineyard practices and early picking, a surprisingly consistent and satisfying collection resulted. “Half the fruit was already on the ground,” he observes, by the time he could pick his best sites. Boxler’s crew knows the difference between good and bad botrytis, he assured me, yet even so, each carried a second bucket into which to drop any fruit about which uncertainty remained, and those lots were subjected to test pressings and severe scrutiny, generally ending up discarded. Boxler’s best 2007s are predictably finer, more structured, and more refined, although the vintage’s superiority is only obvious when it comes to single-vineyard bottlings. “I could live with a vintage like it every year,” he quips. When asked about his aspirations and his role in upholding the reputation of his family’s extraordinary estate, Jean Boxler says he does not want to get any bigger so as to keep complete control, and adds that he doesn’t have a single day free from his vineyards and cellar to go out and sell wine anywhere, so Americans should please not feel offended that he hasn’t – save for a brief, youthful stage in Oregon – ever visited them!Importer: Robert Chadderdon Selections, New York, NY; tel. (212) 757-8185

The Boxler 2006 Riesling Reserve reflects circumstances specific to its vintage, comprising grapes harvested in the Sommerberg past what Jean Boxler deemed optimum for a dry-finishing expression of that cru, but without the nobility that would have justified bottling as vendange tardive. Candied citrus rind, quince, and apricot inform the nose and a glossy palate on which honey and the bitterness of apricot kernel, citrus zest, toasted nuts, and botrytis pungency reach a satisfying standoff. Here the sweetness is noticeable compared with that exhibited in this year’s equally dense “basic” bottling. I’m sure Boxler is correct that this is the potentially longer-lived of the two, but I would still be inclined to drink it over the next 12-18 months, in a culinary context where some sweetness proved useful. Jean Boxler emphasizes the contrast between one of the earliest and hastiest harvest ever at his family’s estate – “just three days after I finished bottling the 2005s, and then every day, including Sunday” – in order to salvage clean fruit in 2006; and the protracted harvest of 2007. “In fact,” he explains, “I started in 2006 with the intention of harvesting grapes for cremant, but they were already too ripe.” Thanks to meticulous vineyard practices and early picking, a surprisingly consistent and satisfying collection resulted. “Half the fruit was already on the ground,” he observes, by the time he could pick his best sites. Boxler’s crew knows the difference between good and bad botrytis, he assured me, yet even so, each carried a second bucket into which to drop any fruit about which uncertainty remained, and those lots were subjected to test pressings and severe scrutiny, generally ending up discarded. Boxler’s best 2007s are predictably finer, more structured, and more refined, although the vintage’s superiority is only obvious when it comes to single-vineyard bottlings. “I could live with a vintage like it every year,” he quips. When asked about his aspirations and his role in upholding the reputation of his family’s extraordinary estate, Jean Boxler says he does not want to get any bigger so as to keep complete control, and adds that he doesn’t have a single day free from his vineyards and cellar to go out and sell wine anywhere, so Americans should please not feel offended that he hasn’t – save for a brief, youthful stage in Oregon – ever visited them!Importer: Robert Chadderdon Selections, New York, NY; tel. (212) 757-8185