1852

September 8, 2017

Approximate year when cabernet sauvignon vines were first imported into California by nurseryman Antoine Delmas in Santa Clara County (modern day Silicon Valley). Delmas listed them in his catalogue as “Cabrunet” and “Medoc.” In 1860, Almaden Vineyards near San Jose released the first commercial California cabernet wine, calling it “Cabernet-Malbec.”

There are 51 Grand Cru vineyards in Alsace. Although the Grand Cru status is one of the most esteemed, there are some producers of great reputation who have chosen not to use the designation. Which of the following producers DOES use the Grand Cru designation?

A. Hugel

B. Zind-Humbrecht

C. Trimbach

D. Léon Beyer

B.

Zind-Humbrecht designates several wines from its greatest vineyards as Grand Cru. Although the other three producers all own Grand Cru vineyards (or parts of them), they do not use the term on some of their best wines. The decision not to use the term is a form of quiet protest over the standards set for Alsace Grand Cru vineyards, which some producers feel are not as stringent as they would like. Trimbach’s famous riesling called Clos Ste.-Hune, for example, is not designated Grand Cru although it could be since the wine comes from a tiny plot within the Grand Cru vineyard called Rosacker.

“Living wines have ups and downs just as people do, periods of glory and dog days, too. If wine did not remind me of real life I would not care about it so much.”

1852

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