Lot presentation

Alsace Riesling Les Jardins Ostertag (Domaine) 2019

The wine

Riesling is the Rhine variety par excellence, perfectly adapted to the climate and terroirs of Alsace. This is a dry wine with a pale yellow colour, a delicate nose of fruit and flowers, and a lively, aromatic palate. All these elements Arthur Ostertag seeks to reveal in his cuvée, highlighting the grape itself rather than the terroir in which it is grown. Vines from several parcels are used to make up this cuvée, between ten and thirty depending on the vintage, and these are mainly located in Epfig. The soils are quite diverse, containing sandstone, clay and sand, all on gentle slopes.

About the Producer Ostertag

Located in Epfig, in the Lower-Rhine, the Domaine Ostertag ("Easter Day") has raised itself to the top of the hierarchy of Alsace properties in just two generations. Adolphe Ostertag created the Domaine in 1966. His son André took over in 1980, helped by his sister Annie. There are 15 hectares of vines, consisting of a hundred plots spread over five different terroirs. André Ostertag is in the habit of talking of the 80 gardens that he tends.
Trained in Burgundy, André has made quality his priority. Controlled yields, careful management of the vines, meticulous vinification, and ageing partially in barrels (for the Pinot Gris). In 1997, he converted the vineyard to organic farming (with AB certification) and then to biodynamic methods (without certification). Riesling, of which André Ostertag is a big fan, accounts for nearly 50% of the property's vines. The other varieties, in decreasing proportions, are Gewurztraminer, Pinot Gris, Sylvaner, Pinot Noir and Muscat. Different combinations of terroirs, grape varieties and levels of ripeness enable the Domaine to produce about twenty cuvées each year. André Ostertag classifies them in three main families: fruit wines (expressing the variety and grape flavours); stone wines (expressing the terroir); and vins de temps (which involve both meanings of the French word "temps" i.e. "weather" and "time", resulting in late ripening or noble rot).

Detailed characteristics