I attended a very interesting wine dinner last night featuring the wines of Marcel Deiss and the cuisine of Alsatian-born chef Jean Joho at Everest Restaurant in downtown Chicago. The winery was represented by Clarisse Deiss, wife of winemaker J-M Deiss.
Marcel Diess is based in Bergheim in Alsace and makes wines that express the terroir of his various vineyard sites. Here are some general notes about the winery’s vision:
* They have been organic farming for 30 years and utilizing biodynamic agricultural methods for 10 years. Biodynamic farming subscribes to the philosophy that you make the vines as resistant as possible to disease through various natural methods. For example, he will spray selesium (i.e. quartz-like crystals) on his vineyards to help magnify sunlight to help promote photosynthesis.
* An average vine in Alsace yields 2.5 liters of wine (about 30 clusters). While Deiss’ vines yield about 0.5 liters per vine (or about 6 clusters). The roots of his vines sometime penetrate 30 meters into the ground.
* Each wine strives to reflect vineyard sites and the “living earth” surrounding it. Many are field blends of numerous varietals. Most of his Riesling-based wines are planted in calcerous soil, while his pinot gris and gewürztraminer are planted in darker soils.
* The field blends are all harvested at the same time and vinified in the same vats, so each vintage truly can be significantly different than the last (depending upon how each varietal ripens and grows during the year). Deiss subscribes to the notion that terroir will dominate the notion of varietal.
Here are some notes on the wines we tasted (with prices at Howard Wine Cellars in parentheses). Food courses in italics:
2000 Pinot Blanc Bergheim ($16)
Aromas of tropical fruits –mango and pineapple, and some peat. Smooth creamy texture, weightier than most pinot blancs I’ve tried. Lacking some acidity, but more soft than flabby. Very pleasant starter wine. 87P.
Vintage Carnaroli Risotto, Wild Escargot and Wild Herbs
1998 Riesling St. Hippolyte ($21)
Smoky petroleum, sulfurous, well-water nose that blew off with several minutes of aeration. Mineral-city, primarily wet stone and chalk. Very tart lime flavors. Light-bodied and racy. Nice pairing with the food. 88P.
1998 Riesling Beblenheim ($21)
From more gravelly/sandy, less calcerous soil than the St. Hippolyte. Juicy citrus fruit. Very crisp and clean, but lacking length on the finish. 87P.
Sauteed Foie Gras, Braised Golden Beets and Red Beet Coulis
1998 Pinot Gris Bergheim ($34)
A sweet style Pinot Gris that pumped out fantastic aromas of vanilla and peach blossoms. Smooth and velvety, pear liqueur and earthy flavors. Long finish. Excellent. 92P.
Braised Atlantic Halibut, Parmentier Sauce, Crispy Bacon
1999 Engelgarten 1er Cru ($34)
A field blend of Riesling, Pinot Gris, Beurot, Muscat, and Pinot Noir(!). Very interesting nose, that reminded of a candy from my youth called “Neccos”. The gravel in the soil really comes through on this wine. A very narrow backbone with serious tightness. Orange zest. Slightly bitter. A razor sharp wine. Always one of my favorite dry Rieslings, this was an average effort for this vineyard site, but still a 90P wine.
1998 Grasberg 1er Cru ($41)
A field blend of Riesling, Pinot Gris, and Gewurztraminer. From warmer soil than the Englgarten, this one was diametrically opposite in flavor profile. Kaffir lime leaves on the nose, this wine was rich, fruity and spicy, with some of the blend experiencing some obvious bortrytis. Very nicely done. 92P.
Roasted Squab, Spring Peas, and Onions
1998 Burlenburg 1er Cru Pinot Noir
The only red of the evening was a welcomed change of pace. Very burgundian, earthy nose. Flavors of rhubarb, strawberry, celery, kir, and cola. There was a sour streak running through the entire wine which turned me off. Not my style. 84P. The squab was delicious, though.
Alsace Marinated Munster and Juniper
1998 Altenberg Grand Vin ($69)
A field blend of Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Pinot Gris, and Chasselis, this vineyard site has been famous since the Middle Ages. Creamy peach yogurt flavors and aromas. Narrowly focused core suggests that a few years of cellaring will coax out some beautiful nuances of tropical and citrus fruits. It was obvious to see why Chef Joho wanted to incorporate juniper into his pairing, since juniper was a dominant note in the wine. Impressive. 92P.
1998 Schoenenbourg Grand Vin ($69)
A field blend of just about every major white varietal in Alsace. I recently tasted the incredible ’94 Schoenebourg and rated it 96P. This one fell short of that by about 5-6 points, but was still a very interesting wine. Gold color. Hazelnuts, toffee, and caramel aromas promised a viscous experience. But the wine was surprisingly lighter bodied than I thought it would be, with even some light effervescence on the attack. The wine dips in mid-palate and comes back strong on the finish with a blast of coconut taffy. A huge mouthful of flavor, but a somewhat wacky flavor progression. 91P.
Parsnip Pudding, Sabayon of Selction de Grains Nobles
1996 Gewurztraminer Quintessence SGN (375 ml - $57)
This dessert wine had a goldish-orange color. A bouquet of tangerines and lilacs In the mouth, a tremendous tidal wave of sweet poached pears, apricots and honey. Tongue-coating decadent texture. Lingering finish that was genuinely savored. WOTN. 93P
Fun night. Definitely makes me want to go back to Alsace, one of the most relaxed wine regions in the world. I look forward to trying more Deiss wines in the future.
Cheers,
Otis |