2004 Riesling Grand Cru Altenberg de Bergbieten, Roland Schmitt

It's fascinating when wines, with age, attain the aroma and flavor of a completely different type of wine from a completely different place. This Riesling can easily be mistaken for a great Chablis Grand Cru. The combination of minerality, acidity and focus reminds me of the sheer power of the great vineyards Les Clos and Bougros. But maybe this is logical since is the soil of Altenberg de Bergbieten is heavy, full of lime and barely warm enough.

2004 Riesling Grand Cru Altenberg de Bergbieten from Roland Schmitt is golden yellow. The fragrance is overflowing of acacia, orange flowers, wet flint and one hint of green bananas. The taste is dry, powerful, rich and complex with a dominant minerality, grippy acids and an infinite and clear aftertaste. Dazzling. Surprising! Price (as of 2012): € 14.

2010 Riesling Clos des Chats, Simonis

Actually, it is inconceivable that they have managed to build a golf course in the hills of Alsace. It lies in the valley that extends to the southwest from Ammerschwihr. At the height of the first tee, but on the opposite side of the valley lies the protected, magnificent vineyard Katzenstegel. Here the bedrock is composed of granite, covered by a thin layer of sun-baked sand.

2010 Riesling Clos des Chats from Réne Simonis in Ammershwihr is deep yellow. The scent is, despite the vintage, very generous with pineapple, passion fruit, orange and lilac. The taste is powerful and bursting, full of delightfully chewy fruit, framed by good acids, while the finish is so clean.  Bottled sunshine. Price: € 10.50.