The 2006 Alsace Vintage
Date: Wednesday, January 17 @ 07:06:26 MST
Topic: Wine classifications AOC - Grand Crus...
The Conseil Interprofessionnel des Vins d’Alsace (CIVA) describes 2006 as a year of sharp contrasts, but the region’s inter-professional wine body has given an upbeat summary of the vintage.
A relatively cool and rainy spring resulted in late budburst and slower than usual growth in the vineyards which, CIVA says, was followed by excellent weather conditions in June, in terms of sunshine and temperature, allowing the vines to make up for lost time and flower quickly at the usual date.
A very hot and sunny July led to rapid ripening, but cooler weather in August meant Alsace avoided the risk of drought, with rain that month preserving an “excellent balance between acidity and sugar”.
“Tests held during the first weeks of September gave rise to forecasts of a very ripe vintage with excellent balance,” CIVA added.
The 2006 vintage for AOC Crémant d’Alsace began on 11 September, for all grape varieties except Riesling, which was only allowed to be picked a week later. Harvesting for AOC Alsace and AOC Alsace Grand Cru began on 25 September for all grapes except Riesling and Gewurztraminer, which began two days later. For the Vendanges Tardives and Sélection de Grains Nobles categories, the vintage began on 11 October.
CIVA says the harvest began well for the AOC Crémant d'Alsace but rain in late-September and early-October affected the quality of the grapes – particularly for Pinot Noir and Riesling. “However this will not compromise the quality of the vintage, apart from requiring a certain degree of vigilance for the clarification of the must and the monitoring of fermentation during white wine vinification,” CIVA says.
The rain meant all winegrowers in Alsace picked up the pace of the harvest to reduce the quantity of grapes lost to the weather. Warmer weather from 7 October meant some growers could produce late-harvest Vendanges Tardives and Sélections de Grains Nobles wines from Riesling, Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer. “(These wines) often have extremely high natural sugar levels and great concentration thanks to noble_rot,” CIVA adds.
At the end of the season, Alsace wine stocks stood at 1.72m hectolitres, up 1.6% on 2005. “However, by adding in the estimated total volume of the 2006 vintage, which is lower than forecast, the total volume of wine available should be sufficient to meet the estimated requirements of the market for Alsace wines,” CIVA insists.
december 2006
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