Julien Schaal Riesling Grand Cru ‘Les Roches Volcaniques’ Rangen

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Julien Schaal Riesling Grand Cru ‘Les Roches Volcaniques’ Rangen on the nose has high aromatics with earth notes dominating of minerals and rocks. Terrific palate presence, more of those minerals and white grapefruit, all of which is easy to discern on the nose as well. Dense, rich and dry. Julien Schaal Riesling Grand Cru ‘Les Roches Volcaniques’ Rangen will go well with crayfish court bouillon, poached turbot with hollandaise sauce, seafood skewers with béarnaise sauce.

The Grand Cru Rangen is the only vineyard in Alsace on volcanic rocks. Rock. The hardness of the rock makes the soil stony and its dark colour favours heat retention. Considered as the Montrachet of Alsace, the grand cru Rangen inspired countless poets, such as Michel de Montaigne, who is probably the most famous. 20 year old vines, all on single terraces. The grandest of the Grands Crus and the only one on volcanic rocks. This soil, combined with a 60-degree slope, make for tiny yields of hard-won fruit…. but the results are worth the struggle, the concentration and depth of this wine is extraordinary. Such is the regard for the wines of Rangen that they have inspired countless poets; Michel de Montaigne in the 16th century perhaps the most celebrated. 

Alsace wine region has a unique combination of great soils types that forms a real  ‘kaleidoscope” of geologies. Pink sandstone, blue schist, limestone, granite, gypsum and volcanic rocks are amongst the most interesting soil. You can find all of them on grand cru vineyards. They believe that Riesling is maybe the best variety to translate those characters into wines. In 2011, Olivier Biecher and Julien have launched the winery exclusively dedicated to Alsace Grands Crus wines. From Andlau to Thann, they found numbers of interesting vineyards that all have strong individual character. Today Julien and Sophie are trying their best  to get the full potential of the vineyards into the wine style they love!

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