Maison F.E. Trimbach, Clos Sainte Hune 2011

93 / 100 Robert Parker
The chalky, pithy expression of extract richness in Trimbach’s 2011 Riesling Clos Ste-Hune is much more typical of its type not to mention more backward than the impression conveyed by this vintage’s Frederic Emile. But I wouldn’t have expected quite such a carved-in-stone character from this vintage, one in which Frederic Emile too, in its distinctive way – not to mention the majority of Trimbach wines – excels. Piquancy of legume sprouts and fruit pits mingles with smoky, chalky and alkaline notes on a firm, polished palate, leading to an impressively sustained though slightly severe finish. It will suffice, I suspect, to taste this the next time after it is released in several years, and I would expect it to impress through at least 2028. ”When it came to our own vineyards, we got only 50-55 hectoliters per hectare in 2011,” notes Pierre Trimbach of a generally abundant Alsace vintage. “We started picking already around September 10th,” he continues, “thanks to a hot, dry August and September. There was no rain until October 19, just after we finished picking.” While the Trimbachs express understandable delight with their iconic Rieslings from 2010, they bottled no Pinot Gris Reserve Personnelle and only a single wine from Gewurztraminer. “The quantity was so small, that we said ‘one bottling and that’s it,” relates Jean Trimbach. I urge wine lovers to take advantage of those bottling decisions! (What little 2010 V.T. was picked also ended up being blended out.) The Trimbachs’ Riesling line-up has recently grown by several bottlings, including one from the share of Gaisberg that they recently rented long-term from the local convent. From nearly three-decade- old vines in the highest reaches of this Kaysersberg grand cru there will be, beginning in 2012, a Trimbach Riesling Schlossberg. Both of these wines have prompted the family to break with past practice of not referencing any grand cru vineyards on its labels.
214, The Wine Advocate