Alsace grand cru Pfersigberg

Styles

Principal grape varieties

Terroir

• The soil is marly-calcareous-sandy, consisting of a bedrock of hard limestone covered with pebbles of varied composition, predominantly marly-calcareous in nature.
• The Vosges massif shields the vineyard from the humid, cool north-westerly winds, enabling vine-growing on well-exposed east- to south-west-facing slopes of steep gradient.
• The grand cru is sheltered from oceanic influences by the screen of the Vosges and its forests, and occupies three distinct hillsides.
• The soils belong to a single geo-pedological unit and are associated with a particularly favourable mesoclimate, allowing the grapes to reach high levels of ripeness with ease.
• The calci-magnesian soil with a high limestone content, dating from the Oligocene, has water-retention properties, a soil colour, and low humidity that promote heat radiation, leading to early ripening of the grapes. (via Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0)

• The appellation Alsace grand cru Pfersigberg, recognised in 1992, was delimited with rigour and precision, drawing on the historical core production areas.
• The vineyard is trained on a tall trellis system to maximise leaf-surface area, with a minimum planting density of 4,500 vines per hectare and hand-harvesting of the grapes.

• These age-worthy white wines are distinguished by a pronounced freshness underpinned by a dominant tartaric acidity allied to good grape ripeness.
• The dry, mineral wines as well as the aromatic, fruit-forward, full-bodied, and rich wines display a sustained depth of colour ranging through to golden yellow.
• Vendanges Tardives wines often show highly exotic and candied-fruit aromas with a fresh finish, while those in the Sélection de Grains Nobles category are more concentrated and powerful, often with fruit-paste aromas.
• The designations Vendanges Tardives and Sélection de Grains Nobles are systematically followed by the names Gewurztraminer, Muscat, Muscat Ottonel, Pinot gris, and Riesling, with mandatory indication of the vintage.

• Late-season climatic conditions favour concentration on the vine and the development of noble rot, enabling the production of wines from over-ripened harvests.

Facts drawn from the specification's terroir-link section by automatic interpretation — see the source.

All appellations in France

Sources

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