Sylvaner from Alsace
November 7, 2008
2007 Vin de Alsace, Sylvaner, France, 12%, €15.90 (in a Paris corner shop). (That’s about C$24.)
My Mom is a white wine lover and I picked up this bottle to share with her on our last night in Paris. It was just the very thing for the occasion. Refreshing with just a hint of sweet that allowed it to be enjoyed without any food.
In case you’ve never heard of Sylvaner, it’s a cool climate grape known best in Alsace (an important French wine-producing region, but not one we visited on this trip) and in Germany. It does best in cool climates, but is not as well known as other cool-climate white grapes such as Riesling, Pinot Gris, Muscat, or Gewurztraminer.
A Sylvaner fact for you: in 2006 a vineyard called Zotzenberg stepped up and was recognized by the French appellation authority (a very stern bunch of bureaucrats) as a grand cru (meaning first growth: a snobby French way of designating top vineyards). Before 2006 only the other four aforementioned cool-climate white grapes were authorized to be called grand crus.
If you want to try out the grape a little closer to home, pick up a bottle of 2007 Domaine de Chaberton, Madeleine Sylvaner. It’s a crisp, dry and on the acidic side which would make it a great dinner pairing with creamy pastas or lemony fish. It’s from the Fraser Valley, 100-mile diet approved for Vancouverites and will only run you $12.99 at Village Wines.
For more ideas about French wines, read over the France by the Glass wine list.
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[...] 2007 Vin de Alsace, Sylvaner. (Alsace) France. 12% A crisp and refreshing white with a hint of fruity sweetness that allows it to be enjoyed with or without food. Read more… [...]
[...] you can bring home your leftovers and put them in the fridge (which is also handy for keeping your white wine [...]
[...] Gris, Alsace is known for growing Riesling, Gewurztraminer and Muscat (and to a lesser extent, Sylvaner). Our next stop on the Alsatian oenological tour was a delicious 2002 Pierre Sparr Grand Cru [...]