Mélanie Pfister : Riesling Grand cru "Engelberg" 2024

Characteristics and Tasting Notes of Mélanie Pfister's Riesling Grand Cru "Engelberg" 2024

Tasting

Colour
The colour reveals a lovely white hue with pale golden-yellow nuances.

Nose
The nose reveals citrus and stone fruit aromas, underscored by notes of wet stone, flint, and a delicate touch of ginger.

Palate
The palate unfolds flavours of green apple, pear, and peach, refreshed by the liveliness of lime. The whole is underpinned by pronounced minerality and beautiful acidic tension.

Food and wine pairing

This wine pairs perfectly with oysters, fresh prawns, or a seafood platter. It also goes wonderfully with freshwater fish such as trout or pike, spicy Asian dishes such as Thai cuisine, as well as traditional Alsatian specialities like choucroute garnie or baeckeoffe.

Service and storage

Supported by a beautiful acidic backbone, the Riesling Grand Cru "Engelberg" 2024 is built to age gracefully in the bottle for several years.

Other characteristics

This wine is vinified to be perfectly dry, with only a minimal amount of residual sugar.

The mineral, authentic expression of a great white wine from Alsace

The estate

The family's winegrowing history began in 1780 in the Bas-Rhin, in Alsace. Today, the estate spans 10 hectares and is run by Mélanie Pfister, who represents the eighth generation. Having taken over in 2008, she carries on the family legacy while embracing a sustainable approach. The vineyard has been certified organic since 2021 and incorporates biodynamic methods. The estate stands out for its commitment to crafting fine dining wines that reflect the purity of their terroirs.

The vineyard

Grand Cru Engelberg, a historic terroir of Alsace recognised since the ninth century, spreads across gentle south-facing slopes. Sheltered by the Vosges mountains, the vines enjoy optimal sunlight. The relatively thin soils are composed of clay and gravelly limestone. This particular geology limits vegetative vigour and encourages a natural concentration in the berries, giving the grapes a strongly marked mineral identity.

The vintage

2024 was a particularly demanding year in terms of climate. The growing season was marked by intense rainfall, hail events, and heavy disease pressure, notably from downy mildew. These conditions delayed the ripening of the grapes, pushing the start of harvest back to the second week of September. While these weather challenges considerably reduced yields, the surviving berries benefited from exceptional concentration, preserving lovely acidity.

Winemaking and aging

Favouring a hands-off approach, fermentation of the Riesling Grand Cru "Engelberg" 2024 occurs spontaneously through the action of indigenous yeasts. Alcoholic and malolactic fermentation take place simultaneously in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks. The wine then undergoes extended aging on fine lees in these same inert vessels, encouraging the development of its aromatic and textural complexity.

Grape variety

100% Riesling