Zind-Humbrecht Goldert Muscat 2018
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Wine
Enthusiast -
James
Suckling
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Intensely fragrant with elements of exotic fruit, stones, and bergamot tea supported by brisk acidity that lengthens the refined and complex finish.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Smoky, funky reduction still completely clouds this wine’s nose. Underneath that, slight notions of honeysuckle and citrus can be discerned. The bone-dry palate speaks of rounded richness, despite its relative slenderness, but a core of lemony brightness bathes everything in freshness. Tender spice and citrus zestiness tingle on the long finish and promise future joy. Drink 2025–2040.
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James Suckling
Fragrant yet tightly focused, this captures the grapey aspect of this grape, but also offers delightful mandarin, nectarine and blossom notes. The concentrated yet lively palate has a riesling-like texture, the minerals building beautifully on the long finish. A rare dry muscat with aging potential. From biodynamically grown grapes. Drink or hold.
Other Vintages
2021-
James
Suckling
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James
Suckling
Certified Organic and Biodynamic.
While Muscat comes in a wide range of styles from dry to sweet, still to sparkling and even fortified, it's safe to say it is always alluringly aromatic and delightful. The two most important versions are the noble, Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains, making wines of considerable quality and Muscat of Alexandria, thought to be a progeny of the former. Somm Secret—Pliny the Elder wrote in the 13th century of a sweet, perfumed grape variety so attractive to bees that he referred to it as uva apiana, or “grape of the bees.” Most likely, he was describing Muscat.
With its fairytale aesthetic, Germanic influence and strong emphasis on white wines, Alsace is one of France’s most unique viticultural regions. This hotly contested stretch of land running north to south on France’s northeastern border has spent much of its existence as German territory. Nestled in the rain shadow of the Vosges mountains, it is one of the driest regions of France but enjoys a long and cool growing season. Autumn humidity facilitates the development of “noble rot” for the production of late-picked sweet wines, Vendange Tardive and Sélection de Grains Nobles.
The best wines of Alsace can be described as aromatic and honeyed, even when completely dry. The region’s “noble” varieties, the only ones permitted within Alsace’s 51 Grands Crus vineyards, are Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Muscat, and Pinot Gris.
Riesling is Alsace’s main specialty. In its youth, Alsace Riesling is dry, fresh and floral, but develops complex mineral and flint character with age. Gewurztraminer is known for its signature spice and lychee aromatics, and is often utilized for late harvest wines. Pinot Gris is prized for its combination of crisp acidity and savory spice as well as ripe stone fruit flavors. Muscat, vinified dry, tastes of ripe green grapes and fresh rose petal.
Other varieties grown here include Pinot Blanc, Auxerrois, Chasselas, Sylvaner and Pinot Noir—the only red grape permitted in Alsace and mainly used for sparkling rosé known as Crémant d’Alsace. Most Alsace wines are single-varietal bottlings and unlike other French regions, are also labeled with the variety name.