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Domaine Paul Blanck Last updated: 16-11-97 |
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Domaine Paul Blanck Last updated: 16-11-97 |
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Contents:
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 Overlooking the Vallee de Kaysersberg form the Grand Cru Furstentum vineyard with Philippe Blanck (july '95) |
| Introduction | This Domaine is situated on the Grand Rue
in Kientzheim and is run by two brothers, Marcel and
Bernard, and their sons. Bernard's son Frederic is
currently responsible for the winemaking, while Marcel's
son Philippe is responsible for the commercial side of
this estate. The Domaine Paul Blanck provides an impressive range of wines. Basic, generique, wines in all the grape varieties, as well as a range of lieux dits and grands crus. Frederic Blanck, the winemaker, is not afraid of experimenting. At nearly every visit to the Domaine Blanck one will be able to taste a special cuvee of some sort, showing the Domaine's interest in improving their wines and finding new ways to improve them. The Domaine Blanck also has an official winesite. It is bilingual (French and English) and well worth visiting. You can find it at www.Blanck-Alsace.com |
| Vineyard holdings | |||
| Vineyard | Status | Area (in ha) | Age of vines (years) |
| Schlossberg (Kientzheim) | Grand Cru | 2.1 | |
| Furstentum (Kientzheim) | Grand Cru | 6.0 | |
| Sommerberg (Katzenthal) | Grand Cru | ||
| Wineck-Schlossberg (Katzenthal) | Grand Cru | ||
| Mambourg (Sigolsheim) | Grand Cru | ||
| Altenbourg | Lieu dit | ||
| Rosenbourg | Lieu dit | ||
| Patergarten | Lieu dit |
| Grape varieties | Percentage of total area (1996) |
| Chasselas Sylvaner Pinot Blanc & Auxerrois Riesling Muscat Tokay Pinot Gris Pinot Noir Gewurztraminer |
1% 8% 16% 30% 3% 14% 9% 19%
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Information in this paragraph obtained from "The Wines of Alsace", by Tom Stevenson, Faber & Faber, London, first edition, 1993, page 363. Additional information provided by the Domaine.
| Technical information | The Domaine's way of
treating their vineyards is much influenced by organic
methods. Using insects to fight the root of the problem,
rather than spraying it. Attempting to reinstate the
vine's natural resistance against deseases. And also
during the winemaking, addition of chemicals is almost
none present. Wines are vinified and brought up in stainless steel tanks, that have temperature control. Wood ageing is only used for their Pinot Noir "F", which comes from the Grand Cru Furstentum, but cannot be labelled Grand Cru. Both Frederic and Philippe have a keen interest in the geology and microclimates of their vineyards, and especially Philippe never fails to point out during tastings what influences a certain soil composition has on a wine. Much effort has been invested in the past years to prove that the Furstentum soil can bring forth good Riesling wines (not much Riesling is in general planted on this vineyard). Especially their 1993 Riesling Furstentum proves they have a point in that respect. |
| Tasting
impressions The amount of wines one is allowed to taste when visiting Domaine Blanck is usually quite impressive. This explains the long list presented here. |
The generique wines of
Blanck are in the dryer style of Alsace winemaking. A
personal standout for me is usually the Pinot Auxerrois
VV, that is exceptionally well made and combines straight
acidity with the lovely perfumed style of the Auxerrois
grape. In their lieux dits and grands crus, Blanck always tries to let their wines express the specific terroirs. This gives classic, racy and usually very dry Rieslings from the Schlossberg and Rosenbourg vineyards, where the soil is granite dominated. Finesse and fine complexity can be found in the Furstentum Rieslings. The Tokay wines have lots of extract, and especially the Altenbourg vineyard (just below the Grand Cru Furstentum but with an altogether different soil) can give very sturdy yet beautiful Tokay wines. My favourite vineyard for Gewurztraminer is usually the Furstentum, where a standout wine was produced in 1991 and 1994 (the latter was not yet released). Other vintages can sometimes be hard to assess when young |
1996 Sylvaner VV 1996 Pinot Blanc 1996 Muscat 1996 Riesling 1996 Riesling Patergarten 1996 Riesling Rosenbourg 1996 Riesling Schlossberg 1996 Riesling Schlossberg VV 1996 Riesling Sommerberg 1996 Gewurztraminer Altenbourg 1996 Gewurztr. Wineck-Schlossberg 1996 Tokay Furstentum 1996 Gewurztraminer Furstentum VT 1996 Riesling Furstentum VV 1996 Tokay 1996 Tokay Patergarten 1996 Tokay Altenbourg VT 1996 Pinot Noir 1996 Pinot Noir "F" 1996 Tokay Furstentum SGN 1996 Gewurztraminer 1996 Gewurztraminer Altenbourg 1995 Riesling Rosenbourg 1995 Riesling Schlossberg 1995 Riesling Schlossberg VV 1995 Gewurztraminer Furstentum VV 1994 Pinot Auxerrois VV 1994 Riesling Schlossberg 1994 Riesling Schlossberg VV 1994 Riesling Furstentum VV 1994 Tokay Furstentum 1994 Tokay Altenbourg VT 1994 Tokay Furstentum SGN 1994 Gewurztraminer Furstentum VT 1993 Riesling Furstentum 1993 Riesling Furstentum VV 1992 Riesling Schlossberg 1992 Pinot Noir "F" 1991 Riesling Furstentum VV 1991 Gewurztraminer Furstentum VV 1990 Riesling Schlossberg 1990 Gewurztraminer Furstentum VT 1989 Gewurztraminer Furstentum VT 1989 Gewurztr. Furstentum SGN 1987 Cremant d'Alsace 1985 Gewurztraminer Furstentum VT |
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