Famille Hugel
Riesling VENDANGE TARDIVE 1988
great specialty for several generations of the Hugel family, who drafted the law on late harvest.
Wine with great power and longevity to taste religiously by itself during a special occasion.
Wine with great power and longevity to taste religiously by itself during a special occasion.
Specifications
Alcohol content : 13.5° % vol.
Residual Sugar : 19.5 g/l
Age of vines : 32 years old
Yield : 28 hl/ha hL/ha
Presentation
Quick View
These wines made from overripe grapes are picked well after the classic vintage and in the greatest years only. The action of noble rot (botrytis cinerea) gives them an almost unlimited ability to age. They are part of the elite of the greatest wines in France.
The vintage
The first vintage of the famous 1988-1989-1990 trilogy. The extremely favourable meteorological conditions, in particular at the end of the season, gave bunches that were perfectly healthy, exceptionally ripe, with good levels of acidity. Thanks to an Indian Summer, we interrupted picking from 7th October until 7th November, with extraordinary results. Noble rot (botrytis) that developed during that period enabled us to produce, for the first time since 1976, significant amounts of SELECTION DE GRAINS NOBLES wines, as well as RIESLING VENDANGE TARDIVE with superb botrytised character.
In the vineyard
Produced from over-ripened grapes in a selection of the oldest plots of the Hugel estate in the heart of the grand cru Schoenenbourg. This fantastic historical terroir has been almost exclusively devoted to Riesling for centuries.
Keuper, marl, dolomite and gypsum, rich in fertilising agents, overlaid with fine layers of quaternary siliceous gravel, Vosges sandstone and Muschelkalk, with at its eastern extremity outcrops of Lias marl limestones.
Harvest date : 9.Nov. 1988 Potential alcohol : 14°6
Keuper, marl, dolomite and gypsum, rich in fertilising agents, overlaid with fine layers of quaternary siliceous gravel, Vosges sandstone and Muschelkalk, with at its eastern extremity outcrops of Lias marl limestones.
Harvest date : 9.Nov. 1988 Potential alcohol : 14°6
Winemaking
The grapes are taken in small tubs to the presses, which are filled by gravity, without any pumping or other mechanical intervention.
After pressing, the must is decanted for a few hours, then fermented in temperature-controlled barrels or vats (at 18 to 24°C). The wine is racked just once, before natural clarification during the course of the winter. The following spring, the wine is lightly filtered just before bottling, and the bottles are then aged extensively in our cellars until released for sale.
After pressing, the must is decanted for a few hours, then fermented in temperature-controlled barrels or vats (at 18 to 24°C). The wine is racked just once, before natural clarification during the course of the winter. The following spring, the wine is lightly filtered just before bottling, and the bottles are then aged extensively in our cellars until released for sale.
Presentation
Photos of bottles and labels, 3 definitions, max 300dpi
Varietal
Riesling : 100%
Specifications
Alcohol content : : 13.5° % vol.
Residual Sugar : : 19.5 g/l
Age of vines : : 32 years old
Yield : : 28 hl/ha hL/ha
Advice
Tasting notes by Serge Dubs, World's Best Sommelier 1989
Rich, intense, concentrated, bright straw-yellow colour.
A very concentrated, aromatic bouquet, expressive and complex, with very ripe fruit character of peach, quince, rather citrus, nicely over-ripe yet vivacious.
On the palate, soft, velvety, silky, suave, with a fine, delicate finish, and agreeable freshness. A perfectly-balanced wine with class and distinction, to be enjoyed now or kept for many years.
July 10, 1996
A very concentrated, aromatic bouquet, expressive and complex, with very ripe fruit character of peach, quince, rather citrus, nicely over-ripe yet vivacious.
On the palate, soft, velvety, silky, suave, with a fine, delicate finish, and agreeable freshness. A perfectly-balanced wine with class and distinction, to be enjoyed now or kept for many years.
July 10, 1996
