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Alsace Willm - Riesling - Reserve label
Alsace Willm - Riesling - Reserve bottle

Alsace Willm - Riesling - Reserve 2018

White Wine

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Item# 451C-18

Ageing

The juice is decanted in order to begin the winemaking with a clean and clear must. We inoculate with selected neutral yeasts to start the alcoholic fermentation. The fermentation takes place in temperature controlled stainless steel vats (64 Fahrenheit / 18 Celsius) and takes between 4 to 6 weeks. It is followed by a maturing on the fine lees for another 2 to 3 months. The wines are then racked, cold stabilized and go through a light filter (Kieselguhr). The wine is then finished and stays in tempered tank until the bottling. The wines are generally bottled between 8 and 10 months following the harvest.

Tasting Notes

Pale yellow with golden hints
Nice aromatic intensity, citrus and white flowers notes.
Straight forward, fresh, good acidity, good persistence, citrus notes.

Estate

In 1896 the Willm family founded the Willm Estate in Barr, at the foot of the majestic Kirchberg de Barr Grand Cru vineyard. Willm has always been concerned with revealing the best of its terroirs and sharing its exceptional wines with the whole world. Thanks to the adventurous founder Emile WILLM, the estate’s wines were the first from Alsace to be exported to the United States in the early 1930s, after prohibition laws were lifted. Their wines are celebrated for their blend freshness, minerality and elegance; they are synonymous with tradition, terroir, purity and refinement.

Vineyard

The Willm vineyard is located in the Barr region of northern Alsace at an altitude of 200-400 meters, extending from the mountainous base of the Vosges to the plains of Alsace and the Rhine. Bordered by the Vosges Mountains to the west, the Barr hillsides benefit from a dry and sunny microclimate thanks to their south-southeast exposure, optimal for cultivating the vines. The fluctuation between warm days and cool nights in autumn is conducive to a slow, prolonged grape maturation.

Our diverse soils are a product of the region’s diverse landscape. The mountainous Vosges make way for smaller hills which stretch into various flatlands—just a few of about a dozen geological formations that comprise our region’s landscape. The vineyard itself consists primarily of granite and clay-limestone soils, while the coastal marine environment contributes to the terroir’s mineral-rich quality.

Vintage

This was a vintage with a long and hard winter, beautiful days in March, but 2 nights of frost in April which interrupted the growth and proved to be devastating. Continuing cool temperatures resulted in the loss of 35% of the harvest. It is also the fifth hottest summer in the last 40 years. A small crop and quite warm weather led to rapid maturing of the healthy grapes, deeply concentrated in flavor. Will without doubt be one of the best vintages of the decade.