scottreiner
scott reiner
Christian Binner is making some of the finest wines in Alsace today. Historically, Alsace has made amazing wines, but global warming and modern wine making have not been kind to the region. All too often I taste a current Alsatian wine and it is flabby and flat. There is no verve, no life to the wines. Global warming is partially to blame, as temperatures have been rising slowly for years. But, this alone cannot tell the whole story. Growers are picking their grapes riper and wine makers have been looking for ever more concentration and size in their wines. When these practices are followed, inevitably something is lost in the wines and I get sad.
Enter Christian Binner. The Binner family has owned vines in Alsace since 1770, no arravistas here! Today they practice organic and biodynamic agriculture, neither fine nor filter the wine, use only natural yeasts, use minimal sulfur, etc... All wines are aged in 100 year old big barrels. All wines go through malo-lactic fermentation. In sum, these wines taste like Alsace. But more than that, they can be exciting. At their best they are alive with acidity and bring you back to a time when Alsatian wines were a much safer bet than they are today. Now, having written all this, I will add that I do not like all of his wines. Often, this is simply a case of an off vintage or bottle, in my opinion. For example, recently I had an 05 Pinot Gris, a wine I have loved in the past. On this day, however, the sugar and the acid were fighting and the sugar won, leaving me a tad bored. This could have been an off bottle, as I have had the 05 before and loved it.
So here are my quick notes on the wines I really liked at a recent tasting. All of these wines will help me get drunk very soon...
2008 Pinot Noir - For me Christian makes the best Pinot Noir in Alsace, and the 08 is no exception. Great light fruit on the nose, raspberry and a bit of cranberry in the background. On the palate, wonderful finely grained tannins, fruit with a little bit of underbrush. Refreshing, delicate acidity.
2008 Muscat Gazouille - Ever so slightly effervescent. Classic dry Muscat, but a bit lighter, without the viscosity that sometimes arrives. The notes of ginger really spice things up.
2002 Muscat Hintenburg - Vandage Tardive, or Late Harvest, so the grapes are picked extra ripe and some sugar remains in the wine. Rich and balanced and delicious. The acid/sugar balance is textbook. Differentiated by a beautiful citrus streak that completes the package.
2007 Saveurs - A blend of Pinot Gris, Muscat and Riesling. Any wines that do not fit into the big barrels go through alcoholic fermentation separately by grape in cement and then are combined for the malo-lactic fermentation, forming the Saveurs. This is tasty, fun stuff. It is not as interesting as the rest of the line up, but at half the price is perfect every day juice!
2005 Gewurztraminer Cuvee Beatrice - Everything you want in a Gewurztraminer. Litchi, viscosity and acid. But not overdone. As I mentioned about Alsatian wines above, too many Gewurztraminers today are so big and viscous that they are sloppy. Not here. Amazing.
2007 Gewurztraminer Cuvee Beatrice - Similar to the 05, but with obviously less time in the bottle, so it is less developed and fresher. A wonderful note of white pepper on the nose and the palate. Young and light, but there is so much to like at this phase in the development it is hard to wait.
Enter Christian Binner. The Binner family has owned vines in Alsace since 1770, no arravistas here! Today they practice organic and biodynamic agriculture, neither fine nor filter the wine, use only natural yeasts, use minimal sulfur, etc... All wines are aged in 100 year old big barrels. All wines go through malo-lactic fermentation. In sum, these wines taste like Alsace. But more than that, they can be exciting. At their best they are alive with acidity and bring you back to a time when Alsatian wines were a much safer bet than they are today. Now, having written all this, I will add that I do not like all of his wines. Often, this is simply a case of an off vintage or bottle, in my opinion. For example, recently I had an 05 Pinot Gris, a wine I have loved in the past. On this day, however, the sugar and the acid were fighting and the sugar won, leaving me a tad bored. This could have been an off bottle, as I have had the 05 before and loved it.
So here are my quick notes on the wines I really liked at a recent tasting. All of these wines will help me get drunk very soon...
2008 Pinot Noir - For me Christian makes the best Pinot Noir in Alsace, and the 08 is no exception. Great light fruit on the nose, raspberry and a bit of cranberry in the background. On the palate, wonderful finely grained tannins, fruit with a little bit of underbrush. Refreshing, delicate acidity.
2008 Muscat Gazouille - Ever so slightly effervescent. Classic dry Muscat, but a bit lighter, without the viscosity that sometimes arrives. The notes of ginger really spice things up.
2002 Muscat Hintenburg - Vandage Tardive, or Late Harvest, so the grapes are picked extra ripe and some sugar remains in the wine. Rich and balanced and delicious. The acid/sugar balance is textbook. Differentiated by a beautiful citrus streak that completes the package.
2007 Saveurs - A blend of Pinot Gris, Muscat and Riesling. Any wines that do not fit into the big barrels go through alcoholic fermentation separately by grape in cement and then are combined for the malo-lactic fermentation, forming the Saveurs. This is tasty, fun stuff. It is not as interesting as the rest of the line up, but at half the price is perfect every day juice!
2005 Gewurztraminer Cuvee Beatrice - Everything you want in a Gewurztraminer. Litchi, viscosity and acid. But not overdone. As I mentioned about Alsatian wines above, too many Gewurztraminers today are so big and viscous that they are sloppy. Not here. Amazing.
2007 Gewurztraminer Cuvee Beatrice - Similar to the 05, but with obviously less time in the bottle, so it is less developed and fresher. A wonderful note of white pepper on the nose and the palate. Young and light, but there is so much to like at this phase in the development it is hard to wait.