Valentin Zusslin : Pinot Noir "Bollenberg" 2023

Characteristics and Tasting Tips for the Pinot Noir "Bollenberg" 2023 from Valentin Zusslin

Tasting

Colour
The wine reveals a ruby hue of lovely intensity, which may show violet highlights in its youth.

Nose
The aromatic bouquet opens with mouth-watering notes of ripe red fruit, such as morello cherry, strawberry and raspberry. These are lifted by subtle touches of spice, light toasty nuances and delicate hints of orange peel.

Palate
The attack is crisp and gives way to a silky palate, carried by lovely freshness. The fine, melted tannins blend harmoniously into a mineral, saline framework, stretching the wine towards a long, lively and particularly juicy finish.

Food and Wine Pairing

This red wine pairs wonderfully with roasted or slow-cooked meats, such as spiced confit shoulder of lamb, poultry or mushroom-based dishes. Its fruity profile and silky tannins also make it a daring companion to desserts combining chocolate and red fruit, such as a Black Forest gâteau.

Serving and Cellaring

For optimal enjoyment, we recommend serving this Pinot Noir "Bollenberg" 2023 at a temperature of 18 °C, with a brief decanting while it is young. This wine can be enjoyed now, but will continue to gain complexity in the cellar until around 2038.

The Elegance and Depth of a Great Red Wine from Alsace

The Estate

Founded in 1691 by Jodocus Cisle, Valentin Zusslin is a historic name in the Alsace vineyards. Located in Orschwihr, this family estate extends over 16 hectares. Today, Marie and Jean-Paul Zusslin, representing the thirteenth generation, run the estate. Pioneers in their region, they continue a deep commitment to biodynamics, begun as early as 1997. Renowned for their agroecological approach, the family crafts pure, distinctive terroir-driven wines, raising their cuvées to the pinnacle of Alsatian production.

The Vineyard

This wine comes from the famous Bollenberg hillside, an emblematic terroir in the south of Alsace, renowned for its particularly warm, dry microclimate. The vines thrive on predominantly clay and iron-rich soils resting on a bedrock of Jurassic limestone. This environment, rich in biodiversity, is farmed according to the strict principles of biodynamics and organic agriculture, encouraging an authentic and mineral expression.

The Vintage

This vintage is marked by a search for balance and freshness. The conditions of the year shaped a wine with a precise profile, favouring brightness of fruit and finesse over extroverted power.

Winemaking and Ageing

The philosophy in the cellar is minimalist and non-interventionist. Fermentations take place with indigenous yeasts. The Pinot Noir "Bollenberg" 2023 benefits from a two-week skin maceration in truncated conical foudres. Ageing then continues for fifteen months in large foudres and oak barrels, with no new oak used, in order to preserve the purity of the fruit. The wine undergoes neither fining nor heavy filtration.

Grape Variety

100% Pinot Noir