Dinner with Olivier Humbrecht
We joined Olivier Humbrecht for dinner at San Francisco's Jardiniere to taste the 2009s and learn more about this iconic producer. I was interested to meet Olivier and discuss his winemaking style bacause his wines have always been some of the most opulent and exotic in Alsace; a style I tend not to drink.
Olivier said that global warming and his conversion to biodynamics have indeed brought change to his winemaking style in that mainly he no longer needs to wait late into the harvest for physiological ripeness and that he is picking earlier than in the past. He added that Germany's Pfalz and Rheingau regions have the weather of Alsace 30 years ago. The 2009s did seem more restrained though that could also be the precocious 2009 vintage.
We began with an aperitif of Olivier's 2009 Muscat which was light, dry, graceful at just 11.5% alcohol. This was a surprising way to begin a Zind-Humbrecht tasting where you would expect wines of exotic richness and weight. Olivier said that Muscat is a wine for "after church cocktals" and for quaffing but we thought it went exceptionally well with Jardiniere's house charcuterie. The rest of the menu follows:
Rieslings (paired with Tarte Flambee and Charcuterie)
2009 Riesling Brand, 2009 Clos Hauserer, 2009 Riesling Rangen de Thann Cos Saint-Urbain
Pinot Gris (paired with Local Petrale Sole, Heirloom Squash and Caper Brown Butter Sauce)
2009 Pinot Gris Vieille Vignes, 2009 Pinot Gris Rothenberg, 2009 Pinot Gris Rangen de Thann Clos Sain-Urbain
Gewurztraminers (paired with Magruder Ranch Wild Boar with Roasted Fennel, Leeks, Butter Poached Potatoes and Honey-Apricot Gastrique)
2009 Gewurztraminer Calcaire, 2009 Gewurztraminer Clos Winesbuhl, 2009 Gewurztraminer Rangen de Thann Clos Saint-Urbain
Sweet Wines (paired with Jasper Hill Farms Winnimere raw [raw cow's milk, 60 days]
2006 Riesling Brand VT, 2006 Pinot Gris Clos Jesbal VT, 2006 Gewurztraminer Goldert VT, 2007 Riesling Brand SGN
