Winery & Vintage Info
The Gentil 'Hugel' blanc is the perfect introduction to Alsace wines as it combines the qualities of all our white varietals. This wine revives an ancient Alsace tradition that wines assembled from noble grape varieties were called "Gentil". Gentil "Hugel" allies the suave, spicy flavour of Gewurztraminer, the body of Pinot Gris, the finesse of Riesling, the grapiness of Muscat and the refreshing character of Pinot Blanc and Sylvaner.
As expected, 2020 is a vintage marked by the sun, and lovers of 2009, 2011 or 2015 will find in it a worthy successor to these vintages touched by the power of Helios. The clay terroirs of Riquewihr showed once again their excellent resilience to drought and the summer unfolded without damage. The grapes remained extremely sound until the very end of the picking period which began early on September 7th, resulting in beautiful full bodied yet well balanced wines overall.
No late harvest wines were produced due to the "too good" sanitary conditions which forbid the development of botrytis.
A kaleidoscope of grapiness, produced exclusively from hand harvested grapes in predominantly clay and limestone vineyards, from a dozen of the most favoured localities in and around Riquewihr. A cool and long growing season gives this unique dry wine great finesse and unequalled drinkability.
The grapes are taken in small tubs to the presses, which are filled by gravity, without any pumping or other mechanical intervention. After pressing, the must is decanted for a few hours, then fermented in temperature-controlled vats (at 18 to 24°C). The wine is racked just once, before natural clarification during the course of the winter. The following spring, the wine is lightly filtered just before bottling, and the bottles are then aged in our cellars until released for sale. The whole production of this wine is closed with DIAM the cork without the risk of cork taint. Winery Notes
