A Confusing But Refreshing Wine: Auxerrois From Alsace, France

Post Summary

• Why the wines of Alsace, France are so darn delicious
• A departure from the norm...the confusing Auxerrois grape -- what it is, where it's grown, and other details
• Albert Mann and his Auxerrois

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I love the wines of Alsace, France.  Sitting right on the border of France and Germany, this place has been like a ping-pong ball between the two nations over the centuries. But regardless of who "owned" them, they just kept right on making fabulous white wines that were oily and smooth in texture, fragrant, full-bodied, and mainly dry, which are great alone or with food. I've rarely met a wine from Alsace that I didn't like. 

The other thing I like about Alsace is that it does all the grapes that get a bad rap in a way that would change almost anyone's perception of them. They make very dry Riesling that tastes nothing like the cheap stuff that most people associate with this amazing grape. It has searing acidity but ripe fruit and that oily texture that just melts in your mouth. You think Gewurztraminer is a sweet wine? No. Here it's just fragrant and like an Indian spice bin, but dry and a great match with food. Pinot Gris? Also spicy and doesn't remotely resemble it's sister to the south, Pinot Grigio (same grape).

All of this for under $25 and in long, lean, sexy brown or green bottles to boot. What a steal!

Normally when I reach for an Alsace wine, I go for one of the grapes I just described. There are others -- Pinot Blanc, which is ok, Chasselas, a weird and watery one, and then there's Auxerrois (oh-sehr-WAH). This is the third most widely planted grape in Alsace but über obscure outside the region. I've heard mixed things, but this was from the highly esteemed organic producer Albert Mann, so I grabbed it. I'd never had it before and I had to suss it out. 

First a word on Auxerrois. Ugh. This one is confusing...

Photo Source: Wikipedia

In Alsace, it's also known as Auxerrois Gris, which is Pinot Gris. In nearby Lorraine, Auxerrois Blanc is Chardonnay. In Cahors, in Southwestern France, Malbec is called Auxerrois. But in Alsace, when it's just regular old Auxerrois or Pinot Auxerrois, it's a white wine that is often blended with Pinot Blanc. This grape is grown in Alsace, Luxembourg, Germany, and in very limited amounts in the Loire Valley. 

Oh, and what they thought was Chardonnay in South Africa in the 1980s, they figured out was actually Auxerrois too. Confusing, yes? But limited in scope -- it's not a ubiquitous grape and not setting the world on fire.

What's it supposed to taste like? The wine is known to be lower in acid, with some nice citrus flavors and not much else going on. But in the hands of a good producer, it's not half bad. 

Albert Mann...

And Albert Mann is a great producer. Two families who had been growing wine grapes since the 1600s merged when Albert Mann's daughter married Maurice Barthelmé in 1984. When Albert Mann died in the 1994, Maurice (viticulturist) and his brother Jacky (winemaker) paid homage to Maurice's father in law, and named their newly formed winery (they moved from just growing to producing wine) Domaine Albert Mann. 

Source: AlbertMann.com

The Manns and Barthelmés run the domaine together, performing organic viticulture, and although they are newer to the winemaking game than some of their neighbors -- Zind-Humbrecht, Trimbach, Lucien Albrecht -- Domaine Albert Mann has a great reputation and makes some kick ass wines. They've got a great dedication to making wines that reflect the land.

The Wine

So with that backgound, I felt great about picking up this wine:

The Wine: 2009 Albert Mann Auxerrois Vieilles Vignes (old vines)

From: Wettolsheim, Alsace, France

The Grape: 100% Auxerrois (old vines or Vieilles vignes)

Alcohol: 13%

Color:  A really rich color -- I told M.C. Ice that it was like a Karma Chameleon. It wasn't red, but it was golden-green.

Smell: Kind of subtle. Lemon, lime, pineapple, and pear with a tiny bit of gasoline smell too, it wasn't as heavy or as aromatic as other wines I've had from Alsace but it's a different grape so I went in with an open mind.

Taste: Like it smelled -- lemon-lime, canned pineapple, pear, and some green apple, the wine was a little bitter and had a tobacco and sage note to it. It taste a little like gasoline smells. Rich and oily feeling, with lower acid, the wine was like eating a nut -- it had a fullness and, well, nuttiness to it. 

Food: We had this with fish and it was nice, but kind of uninspiring. It may have been better with cheese or something very mild. The cod in butter drowned out the wine...yes, it's that light.

Drink or sink?: Drink...sort of. I liked this wine, but I couldn't help comparing it to the other wines of Alsace I've had that are from different grapes but have similar textures. This is a nice wine but it's not as special for me as the Riesling, Gewurztraminer, or Pinot Gris I've had from Albert Mann and other Alsace producers. On it's own it's good but there's better varieties out there. 

Have you had Auxerrois? What do you think? Drop a comment here or on Facebook or Twitter and let me know!