Albert Boxler - Riesling Sommerberg 2015

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Producer	Albert Boxler
Country	France
Region	Alsace
Subregion	Alsace Grand Cru
Varietal	Riesling
Vintage	2015
Sku	12105043
Size	750ml

  

WA

95

Country: France
Region: Alsace Grand Cru
Variety: Riesling
Terroir: Granite
Winemaking: Hand-picked from 40 year old vines and aged in stainless steel tanks

The small family domaine in France that works traditionally using techniques and savoir faire passed down across multiple generations is under serious threat today. Consolidation, technology, regulation, foreign investment, globalization, and many other factors (all in the name of progress), threaten the great agricultural tradition of winegrowing in France, arguably the world’s greatest winegrowing culture. Few domaines in France embody this way of life more ably and proudly than Domaine Albert Boxler in Niedermorschwihr. Jean Boxler, many generations removed from his ancestor of the same name that moved here from Switzerland in 1673, currently rules the roost at this humble yet incredibly exciting domaine. Intense and serious about his land, his craft, and his wine, Jean is the genius behind what are certainly some of the finest white wines in Alsace (and the world).

The Sommerberg hillside terminates in Jean’s driveway, making it easy to basically live in the vineyards, ensuring exceptionally healthy fruit year after year. After harvest, the wines are vinified and aged in old foudres in a small cellar underneath the family home until bottling. Not much has changed over the centuries; not much has needed to. Tasting through the entire range of Boxler’s wines is ample proof of the fact that Alsace, along with Burgundy, is the source of the world’s most complex, exciting white wines, and will probably always be.

Boxler's 2015 Riesling Grand Cru Sommerberg opens with the discreet charm and aristocratic distinction of a great wine. Very pure, clear, fine and elegant on the nose, with fine stony and herbal flavors but also ripe stone fruit and floral aromas, the 2015 tells the story of its origin in the glass in an excitingly subtle yet deep way. The palate is great! It is intense and juicy, nicely concentrated and ripe, with a touch of sweetness but gorgeous finesse, vitality and piquancy. The finish is pure and salty and develops a fascinating juiciness that explodes in the finish. This is not a wine for mouthfeel drinkers, but it is surely one of the finest, most delicate and balanced Rieslings you can find from this vintage. The combination of concentration, complexity, structure, minerality and sweetness (due to the low acidity, higher alcohol and extract) could hardly be better.