Displaying items by tag: Olivier Humbrecht

Summary:

Join winemaker Olivier Humbrecht MW, of famed estate Zind Humbrecht in Alsace, for a deep dive into these key components of winemaking: yeast and fermentation! 

Presenter: Olivier Humbrecht, MW

Olivier Humbrecht studied wine together with wine marketing and wine business for five years in Toulouse, and then got the chance to do his ‘military service’ working for Sopexa in London.  He learned about and enrolled on the MW course, becoming France’s first ever Master of Wine in 1989.  He began to work with his father, and converted the family domaine to biodynamics in the early 1990s.  His father had painstakingly built up a unique collection of hill-site vineyards over the decades, notably clearing and replanting a quarter of the great historic Grand Cru of Rangen de Thann with Olivier in his later school years.  Olivier has continued to build on this, notably with the recent acquisition of a parcel of Sommerberg to complement the family’s Grand Cru holdings in Brand, Hengst and Goldert, and to complement its other holdings of Rotenberg, Clos Hauserer, Clos Jebsal, Heimbourg, Herrenweg and Clos Windsbuhl.

Olivier’s respectful, non-interventionist winemaking, combined with his and his father’s fastidious viticulture, has given the world vintage after vintage of magnificently differentiated, nuanced bottlings: global white-wine references.  He has never stopped experimenting and improving on his work, using biodynamic practices, changed row orientations and re-thought canopies recently to produce a much greater percentage of dry wines than before.

Summary:

Join vigneron Olivier Humbrecht MW, of the famed estate Zind Humbrecht in Alsace, for a deep dive into one of the key building blocks of wine: acidity!

In this WSG Live, you will learn about:

• The different types of acids found in grapes and wine and their sensory perception
• How to not only quantify but qualify acidity in wine
• The viticultural factors influencing acidity in the grape
• The vinification practices and factors impacting acidity in the final product
• Evolution of wine acids with age

Olivier will also illustrate his talk with some real-life data and text-book examples of acids measured in various types of wine depending on various variables such as grape varieties, vintage, ripeness, with/without malolactic fermentation and terroirs.  Sharpen your tasting skills by understanding one of the key parameters that makes up the structure of a wine!

Presenter: Olivier Humbrecht MW

Olivier Humbrecht studied wine together with wine marketing and wine business for five years in Toulouse, and then got the chance to do his ‘military service’ working for Sopexa in London. 

He learned about and enrolled on the MW course, becoming France’s first-ever Master of Wine in 1989.  He began to work with his father and converted the family domaine to biodynamics in the early 1990s.  His father had painstakingly built up a unique collection of hill-site vineyards over the decades, notably clearing and replanting a quarter of the great historic Grand Cru of Rangen de Thann with Olivier in his later school years. 

Olivier has continued to build on this, notably with the recent acquisition of a parcel of Sommerberg to complement the family’s Grand Cru holdings in Brand, Hengst and Goldert, and to complement its other holdings of Rotenberg, Clos Hauserer, Clos Jebsal, Heimbourg, Herrenweg and Clos Windsbuhl.

Olivier’s respectful, non-interventionist winemaking, combined with his and his father’s fastidious viticulture, has given the world vintage after vintage of magnificently differentiated, nuanced bottlings: global white-wine references.  He has never stopped experimenting and improving on his work, using biodynamic practices, changed row orientations and re-thought canopies recently to produce a much greater percentage of dry wines than before.

Summary: 

Can you taste ‘minerality’? What do we mean by ‘terroir’? Where do aroma and flavour come from? Is too much attention paid to the role of the soil in discussions of the aromas and flavours of great wines? How rare are truly great wine-growing sites? These are some of the questions we aim to discuss in the upcoming Meeting of the Minds on November 25th.

Wine Scholar Guild Academic Advisor Andrew Jefford, speaking from France, will be bringing together a panel of key thinkers, educators, writers and experts in four countries to talk through these and other issues. Wales-based Professor Alex Maltman has had a forty-year teaching career, and now divides his time between writing about the relationship between geology and wine production as well as the influence of geology on other beverages and tending his own vineyard. California-based Professor Hildegarde Heymann teaches sensory science within the viticulture and oenology department of UC Davis, one of the world’s leading wine-educational institutions. Former plant scientist and science editor Dr Jamie Goode, speaking from the UK, writes, blogs and tweets about wine and wine science via his own Wine Anorak website as well as for The World of Fine Wine and other publications. Finally, speaking from Turckhiem in Alsace, comes Olivier Humbrecht MW, one of the world’s leading exponents and practitioners of site-sensitive winemaking and a widely acclaimed viticulturalist and winemaker.

This Meeting of the Minds aims to explore one of the most misunderstood yet also the most important topics in today’s wine world.

Host: Andrew Jefford

Andrew, Academic Advisor to the Wine Scholar Guild, has been writing about wine since 1988, notably for The Evening Standard and The Financial Times among other UK newspapers. 

He has columns in every edition of Decanter magazine and World of Fine Wine magazine, and is co-chair of Decanter World Wine Awards and vice-chair of Decanter Asia Wine Awards.  His books include The New France, Whisky Island and Andrew Jefford’s Wine Course.

Meet The Panel:

Emeritus Professor Alex Maltman

Aberystwyth University, geologist, teacher, writer

Professor Hildegarde Heymann

UC Davis, sensory scientist, teacher

Dr Jamie Goode

wine writer, wine judge

Olivier Humbrecht MW

wine grower, winemaker

This episode is Part 2 of a conversation with Olivier Humbrecht, MW and Andrew Jefford about Alsace. The first part covered Olivier's journey to become France's first Master of Wine, as well as the history and vineyards of Domaine Zind-Humbrecht.

Part 2 picks up with Olivier's philosophy of non-interventionism and biodynamic principles and practices in the vineyard. In addition to Olivier's approach to farming and yield management, we discuss wine making techniques, pressing, long fermentations, and climate change.

This episode features a conversation with Andrew Jefford, of Decanter Magazine, and Wine Scholar Guild’s Academic Advisor, and Olivier Humbrecht, of Domaine Zind-Humbrecht (Zind HUMbrescht) and Master of Wine.

Done in two parts, this first half of the interview will first cover Olivier’s accomplished journey as France’s first Master of Wine, and the history and vineyards of the domaine.

There’s no wine region I enjoy visiting more than Alsace. 

It’s beautiful, of course – and not just the half-timbered houses around which a profusion of flowers seem to float, or the grand hillside vineyards romping up to the forested Vosges mountains, always somehow bigger and more imposing in scale than those of Burgundy. The growers are fascinating characters, too, as if their historical and geographical position, wedged between (and much fought-over by) France and Germany, has given them an independence of thought which eludes those with a more settled position in each wine culture. 

Then there’s the wines. It’s commonplace to say that Alsace wines are underappreciated -- but it’s true. For me, no white wine region can offer more diversity and intrigue than Alsace, nor does any single regional range of white wines appeal more to my palate...

Summary: 

Join Olivier Humbrecht MW, owner and winemaker of Domaine Zind Humbrecht for an open discussion on the terroirs of Alsace and their impact on vine and wine. Olivier will demonstrate how today’s understanding of the multiple terroirs of Alsace is driving the region toward a more diverse and specific range of AOCs.

Olivier is one of the world’s only winemakers to attain Master of Wine status. Biodynamically farmed, Domaine Zind Humbrecht produces some of Alsace’s most sumptuous and sought-after wines.

The webinar will conclude with a tutored tasting of two of the domaine’s wines:

2010 Riesling Heimbourg ($55/btl)
93 points. A rich, dry white, with luxurious, tactile texture of raw silk, this offers a spicy mineral base and layered flavors of green melon, pink grapefruit zest, honey, fleur de sel and macerated peach, all structured by firm, mouthwatering acidity.
Wine Spectator, 10/2012

2010 Riesling Rangen de Thann Clos Saint Urban Grand Cru ($100/btl)
93 points. A lovely wine, with a minerally undertow and finely tuned acidity framing apricot, kumquat, acacia blossom, smoke and crystallized honey notes that show a hint of lychee. A zesty thread of spice winds through the wine and lingers on the subtle finish.
Wine Spectator, 10/2012

Study Alsace wines in-depth with our Alsace Study Trips. Learn more about French wines with the French Wine Scholar study & certification program.

Back to French Vintage Chart

The vintage chart and harvest reports provided by the Wine Scholar Guild gives you the ranking for every French wine region and vintage from 2000 to today.

Andrew Jefford, award-winning wine journalist for Decanter Magazine and author of twelve books on wine including The New France, has compiled information and written the vintage charts starting with the 2013 vintage. He is also updating information for the vintages prior to 2013.

Last updated: Jan. 16, 2023

Alsace

Vintage	Quality	Drink	Comments
2021		Drink/Cellar	After a cold and unusually snowy winter, March was mild, initiating budburst.  Alsace wasn’t spared the frosts of early April, though the cold winter meant that the losses here were less dramatic than elsewhere (10% in general compared to 50% or more in Burgundy).  The rest of the growing season remained a battle against the elements, with a lack of sunshine and repeated episodes of heavy rain dominating May, June and July; losses from mildew damage outweighed those from frost in Alsace.  August, finally, saw a welcome return of warmth and sunshine.  After more difficult weather at the beginning of September, beautiful early autumn weather in late September and into October paved the way for a late harvest which was much better in quality than growers had dared hope earlier in the season.  The Alsace crop overall was 20% below normal – but some domains suffered more.  “A loss of 50% might be regarded as catastrophic in a normal year,” reported Olivier Humbrecht MW, “but in 2021, it represented a victory over the elements.”  2021 is a fine year for dry Alsace wines in general: tense, textured and with outstanding fruit qualities, and especially so for Riesling.  By contrast, few sweet wines were made in 2021.
2020		Drink/Cellar	As elsewhere in France, winter in Alsace was mild and wet, and the vines got off to an early start; despite this, there were no frost losses and flowering was successful.  Ironically, this was cause for anxiety in Alsace, since 2020 was the first year of a new regional agreement to limit yields for still wines to 65 hl/ha and for Crémant to 70 hl/ha (both from 80 hl/ha formerly): an attempt to limit the region’s perennial problems of over-production.  Growers needn’t have worried: summer was hot and dry and yields fell naturally because of this.  The harvest began very early in this region which has traditionally resorted to late harvesting, with the Crémant harvest beginning in August and still wines in early September.  Growers were particularly happy with the Pinot Noir crop this year, considered by some to be the best ever (and with Pinot Noir often the first of the still-wine varieties to be picked), but every variety gave good results.  Production of sweet wines (after a fine late season) returned to normal after 2019’s very short crop.
2019		Drink/Cellar	A mild winter meant an early start for the vines, though a cool April and May checked the advance somewhat.  There were even frosts in May, though fortunately these didn’t greatly affect the best vineyards; a long and irregular flowering followed in mid-June, after which the vines were three weeks behind the 2018 seasonal pattern.  All change in mid-June and July, as the weather became very hot and dry, and by the end of July drought was beginning to affect the warmest, stoniest sites.  August rains saved the day; by véraison in mid-August the season was back on chronological track.  Magnificent harvesting weather throughout September and on into October contributed further to ripeness, and growers were hugely enthusiastic about the quality of what they harvested, with the wines showing freshness, structure and richness alike.  Both dry and sweet wines will age well.
2018		Drink/Cellar	After a mild, wet January, February was cold and snowy, with temperatures of -13°C by the end of the month. March and April turned wet and mild again and flowering came in early June, up to two weeks early, as the rains continued: Alsace received a year’s rainfall in the first seven months of the year. Temperatures soared and the humidity dropped away from the end of July, with a 40°C heat spike at the end of August. The warm weather continued throughout September and into October, as the nights increasingly grew cooler, enabling a leisurely harvest to unfold over two months or more. The Crémants were picked from August 22nd, with picking for all varieties underway by the second week in September, depending on site. 2018 is a generous vintage in both quantity and style, with Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir being particularly successful, and with substantial production of both Vendange Tardive wines and Séléction de Grains Nobles. The wines will age well in both dry and sweet style.
2017		Drink	After a very cold winter period (with 56 sub-zero days in December 2016 and January 2017), the early spring weather turned warm, with early budburst. As in so many other French regions, frosts struck in late April (20th and 21st in Alsace), affecting 4,500 ha, with 1,500 ha of vineyards losing 80% or more of their crop. The overall harvest (907,000 hl) was 20 per cent down on 2016. The frosts struck flatland or bottom-slope vineyards particularly hard: above all Auxerrois and Pinot Blanc destined for Crémant. After that, conditions were almost perfect for the rest of the season, with a sunny summer interspersed with rain showers, cool nights, and perfect botrytis-forming conditions towards the end of the season.  Summer was also relatively hot here (the fifth hottest in the last 40 years).  It was one of the earliest harvests ever, beginning on August 21st, and although quantity is down, quality is high for all varieties, as well as for red wines and late-harvest wines. The wines are perfumed, complex and concentrated.
2016		Drink	After an alarmingly warm January, spring was cool and fretful, and budburst came normally in April.  June was intensely wet, but the weather improved for flowering at the end of the month, and summer was thereafter warm and dry, with no more rain until September 18th.  Harvest began at the end of September and continued through a generally fine October with good ripening conditions, but little or no botrytis (so there will be few Vendange Tardive and SGN wines this year).  The overall harvest size is normal, and 2016 has produced classically poised, fresh Riesling, Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer wines.
2015		Drink	A perfect weather script for Alsace: a warm, dry spring and early summer was followed by a July heatwave, to the extent that the vines were suffering by early August.  Rain storms on August 9th and 10th were hugely helpful, and after that, the vines ripened perfectly for a leisurely harvest throughout September, VT and SGN included.  All varieties excelled, including Pinot Noir.  2015 is considered the greatest Alsace vintage since 1990 and 1971, though quantities were not large.
2014		Drink/Past peak	A warm spring and early summer led to an exceptionally successful flowering and fruit set.  July, though, had double its average rainfall, creating disease pressures. August was cooler than usual, leading to Drosophila suzukii attacks on Alsace’s dark-skinned grapes (Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer).  Picking in mid- to late-September produced a smaller-than-hoped-for harvest of beautifully balanced wines which, like 2013, favoured dry styles over sweet.  Riesling and Pinot Gris were particularly successful.
2013		Drink/Past peak	A cool, slow spring meant that flowering was delayed until the second half of June.  Mid-July to mid-August was warm and dry (though with hail in some sectors), meaning that early September rain was welcome.  The rest of September was dry and sunny prior to an early October harvest.  2013 is a fine, low-yielding year for dry wines, especially Riesling but also Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer: fresh, elegant and vital.  There are few VT and SGN wines.
2012		Drink	Spring frosts , extended flowering with isolated hail followed by very dry summer & water stress. Beneficial rains in September. Reduced harvest of mature grapes leading to structured wines with potentially long life. Some compare to 2010 or 2002.
2011		Drink/Past peak	Early start. Cool, wet summer marked by frequent storms. Very sunny end of August. Normal volume after short 2010. Sorting key to quality. Lighter, often delicate wines of lower alcohol & moderate acidity, many with early appeal. Considerable variability.
2010		Drink	Mixed spring weather, prolonged flowering, coulure & millerandage. Irregular ripening by variety & parcel. Low yields of concentrated, expressive wines with elevated acidity. Small quantities of very fine VT/SGN across varieties with marked botrytis. Best dry & late-harvest wines will benefit from long cellaring.
2009		Drink/Past peak	Early flowering, hot & dry August. Dry September with cool nights. Healthy, mature wines with higher alcohol, ripe acidity. Grands crus highly successful. Fine October weather, VT/SGN resulting from desiccation of berries (passerillage) rather than botrytis. Exceptional late-harvest Riesling.
2008		Drink/Past peak	Marked variation between early-, late-ripening locales. Damp, cool June extends flowering. Warm but not hot, stormy summer & wet early September. Slow maturation. Structured Riesling, Gewurztraminer from best sites will keep well. Successful VT/SGN wines.
2007		Drink/Past peak	Uneven, long season. Warm spring, wet & cold periods in summer. Notably slow ripening. Dry wines are elegant, tend to be totally dry in ’07 (no residual sugar). Gewurztraminer excelled: rich, highly aromatic. Large number of exceptional VT/SGN.
2006		Past peak	Benign season ends with rain, 24 September into early October. Careful sorting required, some unevenness. Very few VT/SGN except Gewurztraminer, picked after rains.
2005		Drink/Past peak	Heat at flowering, many green harvest to limit yields. Best wines are ripe, balanced. Favorable conditions in October for noble rot, exceptional Gewurztraminer.
2004		Past peak	Riesling in dry style performed best. High yields resulted in many weaker wines. Hardly any VT production.
2003		Past peak	Earliest season since 1893. Record summer temperatures, water stress, hailstorms. Low yields averaged 67 hl/ha. Negligible noble rot, low output of VT, no SGN. Very ripe Pinots, Gewurztraminer. High alcohol & low acidity are common.
2002		Past peak	Varying heat & humidity in summer. Uniform flowering, crop thinning controlled potential volume. Riesling stands out. Favorable end of October for VT/SGN Gewurztraminer.
2001		Past peak	Indian summer completes ripening. Riesling particularly successful. Very fine year for late-harvest wines across varieties. Rules for ripeness of VT/SGN revised as of 2001 vintage, increasing minimum sugar levels.
2000		Past peak	Precocious season, ideal spring, hot & dry summer. Ripe, substantial wines with sound acidities. Widespread noble rot, memorable SGN in relatively large quantity (more than 1997, a voluminous year for late-harvest wines).

Quality	Poor	Poor to Fair	Fair	Fair to Good	Good	Good to Excellent	Excellent	Excellent to Exceptional	Exceptional
Chart Legend

These vintage notes have been prepared by Andrew Jefford, Academic Advisor to the Wine Scholar Guild. New vintage information, and any revisions of previous vintage drinking suggestions, are made each autumn.  Use the chart as a guide only; in every vintage there will be outperforming and underperforming wines.

Back to French Vintage Chart