Three Great Wineries to Visit on the Alsace Wine Route
- Marla
- 5 hours ago
- 4 min read
Alsace, nestled in Northeast France between Paris and Germany, is unique. Alternately owned by France and Germany for centuries, the area is a blend of both cultures, which you’ll see in the cuisine, architecture, and dialect. The region is dotted with picturesque medieval villages that often win “prettiest in France” awards, and castle ruins, including the Chateau du Haut-Koenigsbourg, which has been restored and is worth a visit.
The area, anchored by Strasbourg in the North and Colmar in the South, is famous for its Christmas markets.
But Alsace also boasts a robust wine region dating from Roman times. The Alsace Wine Route, stretching about 100 miles from Strasbourg to just south of Colmar, is the oldest in France. It’s the smallest wine region in France by size but not by influence.
We were told that there are thousands of wine producers in Alsace, and at least 125 wineries along the Alsace Wine Route. Most of the wineries are traditional, small family-owned operations, and some have been producing wine for 12 generations. Much of this wine is not distributed outside the region.
We also discovered that Alsatian wine, similar to Champagne made by the small, independent producers, is very reasonably priced (mainly 7-35 euros a bottle) for wines of very high quality.
You can sample the wines in the tasting rooms in several of the villages. When I can, I prefer to visit the wineries themselves to see the vineyards and meet the owners. One usually also gets the chance to try a wider variety of wines this way.
I recommend, as usual, letting a knowledgeable guide lead the way. We were very happy with our day trip to the Alsace Wine Route with Laurant of Orphorus Tours, a company we had also used to visit Saint-Emilion in Bordeaux. We used Strasbourg as our base in Alsace but tours to the Alsace Wine Route also run from the smaller Colmar.
What’s Different About Alsatian Wine?
The Alsace wine region is distinctive. The wine industry, like the region itself, is a blend of both German and French. For instance, wine labels list the type of wine, the German way, not the region where the wine is produced, as is done elsewhere in France.
Unlike most aging barrels, which are round, typical Alsatian aging barrels are oblong.
The region also produces only certain varietals and has its own wine styles.
About 90% of the wines in Alsace are white wines. The main varieties of wine in Alsace are:
· Riesling, drier than Rieslings produced in Germany
· Pinot Gris, more full-bodied than Pinot Gris from other regions
· Muscat, drier than in other places, typically enjoyed as an aperitif
· Gewürztraminer, very aromatic
· Sylvaner, light and fruity
· Pinot Blanc, lighter than the Pinot Gris
· Pinot Noir, the only red wine produced in the region and usually drunk slightly chilled
An additional varietal, Klevener, originally from Tyrol, can also be grown and produced in Alsace, but only in and around the village of Heiligenstein. There’s a smattering of other varietals, like Chardonnay, used to produce Crémant d’Alsace, the local sparkling wine, made using the “traditional method.”
We also found the wine-tasting experience to be low-key, unpretentious, and authentic. Not unlike parts of Italy’s Piedmont wine region, the tasting rooms at the wineries were homey and the samples generous.
Here are three great wineries to visit on the Alsace Wine Route.
Domaine Noelle Bachert
The first winery we visited was Domaine Noelle Bachert, near the village of Barr, on the edge of Heiligenstein. It’s been family-owned for seven generations; in the 1970s they decided to concentrate solely on winemaking.
The tasting, which was private for our small group, was held in the kitchen, accompanied by toasted brioche. We sampled:
Crémant Chardonnay Brut 😊😊
Riesling Bio (certified organic) 😊++
Riesling Grand Cru Kirchberg de Barr (same grape, different terroir) 😊😊
Klevener de Heiligenstein Bio 😊++
Klevener de Heiligenstein Reserve Bio 😊😊
Pinot Gris Grand Cru Kirchberg de Barr 😊😊
Gewürztraminer Grand Cru de Barr 😊+
Domaine Gilg
The second winery we visited, Domaine Gilg, is outside of Mittelbergheim, the only village allowed to produce Sylvaner Grand Cru. The winery’s cellars date back to the 1500s. The family has owned the land since the 1800s and in the 1950s decided to focus on producing wine.
The tasting room was again small and intimate. We sampled:
Crémant d'Alsace Rose Brut Bio, 100% Pinot Noir 😊😊
Pinot Noir élevé en barriques (aged in barrels) Bio 😊++
Sylvaner Vielles Vignes (old vines) Bio 😊++
Sylvaner Grand Cru Zotzenberg Bio 😊😊
Klevener 😊++
Pinot Gris “Les Tulipes” élevé en barriques Bio 😊++
We then stopped in the beautiful village of Ribeauville, where Doug and I ate outside at Au P’tit Ribeau for typical Alsatian fare, such as Caquelon de Roesti (potatoes with bacon, cream, sausage, and Munster cheese, which comes from Alsace). Yummy and hearty!
Domaine Sylvie Spielmann
Our third winery, Domaine Sylvie Spielmann, near the village of Bergheim, is also family-owned. They were originally gypsum farmers due to their soil, but have been dedicated to winemaking for the past three generations. The tiny tasting room looks like a dining room, with bookcases in the corner. We enjoyed a leisurely wine tasting as the sun set over the vineyards.
We sampled:
Crémant d’Alsace, a blend of grapes grown in the gypsum soil 😊++
Engelgarten Riesling 😊😊
Grand Cru Kanzleberg Riesling 😊😊
Pinot Blanc Bergheim Reserve 😊😊
GypsE Terroir Unique, a wine blend aperitif 😊+
Blosenberg Pinot Gris 😊++
E’pices & Love, an orange wine blend of Pinot Gris and Gewürztraminer 😊++
Grand Cru Altenberg Gewürztraminer 😊++
I hope that this info on three great wineries to visit on the Alsace Wine Route inspires you to check out this region. I wish I had discovered this area sooner. ’S gilt! (Cheers, literally “make it count” in Alsatian).
Are there any wineries in Alsace you recommend visiting? Let us know! We’re at info@winewithourfamily.com.
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