Alsace is actually one of the regions in France with the least rainfall. That is not a bad feature for a travel destination. Hot and sunny in season.
But it is still quite far north in France. So the wines are both sunny and crisp with fresh acidity. Often, they are aromatic. That has a lot to do with the grape varieties they use: riesling, muscat, gewurztraminer (plus a few others).
“Alsace” means in most cases that you think of dry white wines, but not always. They make some excellent semi-sweet and sweet wines. They are sometimes called vendange tardive or for the really sweet séléction de grains nobles.
But even those without the add-on description can have a lot of sweetness. This can be little tricky at times so it may be wise to ask before buying a bottle. There are discussions going on that they will introduce a scale on the label indicating sweetness but there is nothing that has yet been agreed across the regions. But some winemakers have in fact already put it on the label. Good marketing!
Britt has written an article on BKWine Magazine on the sweet Alsace wines, and even a bit on the reds. The reds are made from pinot noir. Read the article on BKWine Magazine: The “other” Alsace: Alsace’s sweet white wines and red wines.
If you want to know a little more about the Alsace wine region, its history, the grapes they use, the grand cru designation (often misunderstood), the producers, and more then you should read Britt’s second article on BKWine Magazine: Alsace – a mixture of French and German?
And if you really want to get to grips with Alsace and its wines then the very best is of course to come along on a wine tour / gourmet trip to Alsace! Then you will enjoy not only a lot of good wines, but also the wonderful food and the marvellously beautiful landscape!
