Alsace grand cru Frankstein

Styles

Principal grape varieties

Accessory grape varieties

Terroir

• The soils of the Frankstein, a two-mica granite, are light, stony, and sandy, with bedrock outcropping in places.
• The low water-holding capacity of these soils forces the vine to penetrate deep through fissures in the rock in search of minerals and water.
• At Dambach-la-Ville, the granite is composed of quartz, white mica (muscovite), black mica (biotite), and feldspar, the last of which weathers into clay. (via Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0)

• The appellation authorises six white grape varieties: Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Pinot gris, Muscat à petits grains blancs, Muscat à petits grains roses, and Muscat ottonel.
• The grapes are harvested by hand, and wines made as Vendanges Tardives or Sélection de Grains Nobles from over-ripe grapes must undergo a minimum of 18 months' ageing.

• The dry, aromatic wines display a colour intensity ranging up to golden yellow, while Vendanges Tardives and Sélection de Grains Nobles reach an amber yellow.
• Vendanges Tardives often show highly exotic and candied-fruit aromas, whereas Sélection de Grains Nobles often present fruit-paste aromas with a more pronounced concentration.

• The minerals drawn from deep within the granite lend the wines a fine, mouth-watering minerality, as well as a straight, vertical acidity.

Facts drawn from the cahier's terroir-link section (Lien au terroir) by automatic interpretation — see the source.

Sources

• Product specification (BO Agri, PDF), JORF 29 juin 2016,
• Official INAO text (show_texte)
• INAO product entry
• Official trade body site — CIVA