Hugel Pinot Gris Classic 2023

Few wine families anywhere in the world can claim a longer unbroken history than the Hugels. Based in the fortified medieval village of Riquewihr, the family has been growing wine there since 1639 — twelve generations and counting — and remains a member of The Henokiens, an exclusive international association reserved for family businesses over two centuries old. Their cellars date back to 1551, and still house what's believed to be the oldest wine cask still in active use anywhere in the world: the Sainte Catherine, built in 1715, the year Louis XIV died, with a capacity of 8,800 litres. This Classic Pinot Gris, first released with the 2006 vintage, is a newer addition to the Hugel range: a careful selection of the best grapes purchased under long-term contract from growers across a dozen favoured sites around Riquewihr, supplemented by fruit declassified from some of Hugel's own Grand Cru vineyards — a genuinely serious pedigree for a wine at this level. The grapes are hand-picked, gravity-fed to the press, and fermented on natural yeasts in temperature-controlled vats, with minimal intervention throughout, resulting in a wine that's dry rather than the off-dry style Alsace Pinot Gris sometimes leans toward.

The result is generous yet precise: yellow melon, golden apple, and ripe apricot meet acacia honey, almond, and a delicate touch of orange blossom, with a round, balanced palate and a long, refreshing finish. Decanter has praised it as "rich and soft," with juicy peach and apricot notes and a gentle ginger spice lift on the palate. It's a wine that punches well above its everyday price point, and — as Pinot Gris tends to be Alsace's most age-worthy white — it holds up beautifully over a few years too.