Cremant Tour de France Stage 3: Alsace

Now that Stages 1 & 2 of my Cremant tour de France are complete, I celebrated Stage 3 by tasting my way through the Cremants of Alsace, in person! 

Located on the eastern border with Germany, Alsace contains 15,621 hectares of vineyards. (Source: backinalsace.com). Approximately 23.3% of grapes harvested from the vineyards are used to make Cremant d'Alsace bubbly. In 2017, 32,125 bottles of Cremant wine were made, 80% of which remained in France due to domestic demand! 

Our first stop along our tasting journey was Domaine Klipfel, in the small town of Barr.

The estate was founded in 1824 by Martin Klipfel. In 1830, he procured the prestigious Clos Zisser vineyard, which is used today for their Vendage Tardive (late-harvest) and Selection de Grains Nobles (grapes affected by "Noble Rot", botrytis, made into lusciously sweet dessert-style wines). Klipfel crafts their Cremants in the Methode Traditionelle style, using Chardonnay and Pinot Noir either as single-varietal bottles, or a mix of the two.

Klipfel's Blanc de Noirs Cremant d'Alsace opens up with a nose of green apples and continues into a palate of lemon zest and steely minerality. The bubbles were aggressive up front, but settled down into a creamy mousse mid-palate, leading into a clean finish.

I am all about the high quality and the unique, sometimes extraordinary quality that comes from smaller, lesser-known producers. Located in the small Alsatian town of Heiligenstein, Domaine J.L. Schwartz lives up to this quality!

Our tasting at J.L Schwartz started off with their Cremant d'Alsace Brut Rose. A lively bouquet composed of strawberries and navel oranges, intertwines with refreshing acidity and delicate mousse on the palate to create a delightful mouthfeel. Unfortunately, the finish dropped off rather quickly, but it did make me want to take more sips quicker to compensate!   

The standout Cremant of the day for both my husband and I was the Brut Chardonnay! The varietal's flavour profile is well represented here, with an intriguing blend of underripe banana and navel oranges along with stony minerality. There is a lively mouthfeel that doesn't overpower, full of delicate mousse and refreshing acidity. Very elegant in style, and very approachable!

Our day of Cremant tasting ended at Domaine Julien Dopff au Moulin. Regarded as one of the pioneers of Cremant d'Alsace, Julien Dopff attended the Universal Exhibition in Paris in 1900, where he learned about "Methode Champenoise". He made it his mission to experiment with Alsatian varietals, and Dopff au Moulin now dedicates a considerable amount of their wine portfolio to Cremant d'Alsace bubbly.

The Dopff au Moulin Rose expresses more autolytic notes than other Cremants d'Alsace I have tasted. But it doesn't overpower the abundant flavours of underripe red fruit on the palate, the creamy mousse, or the bright acidity. Very well-structured and refreshing!

Finally, the 2013 Blanc de Noirs Brut marries notes of dried red fruit and toasted almonds with crisp acidity and aggressive, but not off-putting mousse. Very elegant in style, and very food-friendly.

Cremant d'Alsace offers a variety of sparkling wine created in the Methode Traditionelle, yet can also express a wide array of flavour profiles. There are many excellent Cremants available throughout the world, and even though only 20% of all bottles are exported, you will likely find a variety of Cremants available in your local wine stores.

Stay tuned as I wrap up my Cremant Tour de France later this month with Cremant de Bourgogne!    

Cremant Tour de France Stages 1 & 2: Cremant de Limoux & Cremant de Bordeaux

I really need to start blogging more often.

The Tour de France is almost over already, and although I won't be making it past an estimated stage 5 (pending the amount of Cremants I can find from the Loire Valley in my area), I feel like I am way behind. Life has been crazy hectic in the Concubine household for the past few months: my husband was studying for an exam he wrote in late June and I solo parented so he could focus on studying, and then a plethora of visitors visited the unofficial "Concubine B&B" (now that would be one heck of a name for a B&B!) for a few weeks afterwards. Now that life is calming down a bit, I finally have time to kick off my #cremanttourdefrance and share my tastings!

I decided to start Stage 1 in the Limoux AOP. Located 25km south of the village of Carcassonne, the climate here is influenced by cooling breezes from the Atlantic Ocean, and four varied terroir styles due to its proximity to the Pyrenees foothills. Limoux is also the birthplace of a grape varietal called Mauzac, which is credited to have created the first sparkling wine by the monks of St-Hilaire in 1531. Because of this, Limoux is best known for its sparkling wines. Cremant de Limoux bubblies are generally made using a blend of up to 90% Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc. Secondary grape varietals like Mauzac and Pinot Noir are allowed in the blend to a maximum of 20% (Pinot Noir is allowed up to 10%). Cremant de Limoux is vinified using "Methode Traditionelle", which means that a second fermentation occurs within the bottle, the same way official Champagne is crafted. 

One of the most prominent wineries to craft Cremant de Limoux is Domaine Delmas, located 20 minutes south of Limoux in the village of Antugnac. Their focus is on both Cremant and Blanquette de Limoux wines, but also vinify a still Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

The Cuvee des Sacres Delmas is composed of Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Pinot Noir and Mauzac. Honeyed notes of banana, melon, and a hint of toasted almonds dance on the palate. The bracing acidity on this cremant, as well as the aggressive mousse, pairs well with rich cheeses and seafood in cream sauce. But don't let the intensity fool you; this gem is very approachable and easy to drink!

Limoux is also known for creating another type of bubbly named "Blanquette de Limoux". Blanquette wines are vinified from the Mauzac grape, with a bit of Chardonnay blended in. The wine is aged for 8 months on its lees in old oak barrels. 

The 2011 Cuvee Memoire Blanquette de Limoux also starts off with aromas of honeyed stone fruits, but the flavour profile changes to green apple, lime zest and a strong, steely backbone on the palate. Delicate bubbles (aka "mousse") and crisp, yet refreshing acidity round out the mouthfeel, leading to a strong finish. I enjoyed the Cuvee Memoire on a hot summer's evening, relaxing on my back deck. It was the perfect pairing!

From there, my tour traveled east to Bordeaux. Cremant de Bordeaux was established as an appellation in 1990. The wine varietals allowed in the blend are Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, Ugni Blanc, Colombard, and Muscadelle, creating a more unique flavour profile than what can be found in other Cremant appellations.

And a very unique flavour profile was delivered with the Xavier Milhade Cremant de Bordeaux! A blend of Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon and Muscadelle, prominent floral aromas lead into notes of navel oranges and cantaloupe melon, encased in a mineral mid-palate. The acidity was racy, with delicate mousse. This wine was a treat for me as Cremant de Bordeaux wines are very hard to find in my location!

Now that I have cycled through the better part of Southern France, it's time to head north towards the Loire Valley. Stay tuned for Stage 3, in the coming few weeks!  

Cheers!