Alsace: Diversity in Every Glass
2025 marks 20 years as a wine educator.
In that time, I’ve visited almost every corner of France—except, Alsace. So when the Association of Wine Educators announced a trip there, I couldn’t resist.
Alsace is often described as one of France’s most striking wine regions: dramatic hillside vineyards stretching from north to south, and villages of cobbled streets, half-timbered houses, and traditional charm. It lived up to the reputation. It was March, so the trees wore their spring blossom, sap was flowing through the vines, and the air carried a crisp freshness.
In just three days, we explored the region’s patchwork of terroirs, its wide range of grape varieties, and met producers who balance tradition with innovation. And of course, we tasted an extraordinary range of wines—red, white, rose, orange, sparkling, dry, and sweet, proof of Alsace’s remarkable diversity.
A Patchwork of Geology
Alsace’s vineyards sit on almost every type of rock and soil imaginable. As any gardener knows, particle size, water availability, oxygen levels, nutrients, pH, and temperature all affect how plants grow. The same is true for vines.
This geological diversity translates into a wide palette of grape varieties and wine styles being grown and made in the region. Unlike many regions that specialise in just one or two grapes, Alsace boasts over 10 permitted varieties: Riesling, Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Muscat, Sylvaner, Auxerrois, Gewurztraminer, Savagnin Rose, and Chasselas. Chardonnay is permitted only for Cremant.
Certain varieties thrive in certain soils: Gewurztraminer and Pinot Noir love limestone-clay, Riesling shines on granite, while volcanic soils bring out remarkable expressions of Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, and Riesling. Because of this diversity, Alsace is highly fragmented into single vineyards, or lieux-dits. Fifty-one of these have been classified as Grand Cru.
Climate and the Vosges Effect
Tucked into the east of France, Alsace is France’s warmest, and second sunniest, wine region. When we visited, the soil and air temperature was beginning to warm, and the vine’s sap was visibly flowing. Sap flow in vines is the movement of water, minerals, and sugars from the roots to the rest of the plant, it signals the start of the growing season, and can be seen by dripping sap from pruning cuts. Whilst most of the buds were still wearing their wooly winter caps, Olivier Humbrecht MW of Domaine Zind-Humbrecht had spotted green leaf tips in his vineyards as early as 27th March.
The Vosges mountains create this unique microclimate by blocking wind, rain, and cloud cover, leaving Alsace warm, sunny and dry. This results in wines with an extra degree of ripeness, texture, richness and generosity.
Pinot Noir on the Rise
As global tastes shift towards red wines, Pinot Noir is taking a bigger role in Alsace. Regulations still restrict where it can be planted, but Pinot Noir is now recognised in certain Grands Crus such as Kirchberg de Barr, Hengst, and Vorbourg. Schlossberg with its granite soils is not a permitted site, but Domaine Weinbach have planted Pinot Noir there anyway. They can’t refer to the grand cru on the label so have named it La Colline du Château, the translation of Schlossberg in French. The Pinot Noir was lovely: vibrant red fruit, discreet tannins, and bright acidity that gave the wine both focus and tension. Perhaps Schlossberg will be the next grand cru to permit Pinot Noir.
Sylvaner’s Grand Cru
Zotzenberg, the only Grand Cru for Sylvaner, showed just what this often-overlooked grape can achieve. Granted Grand Cru status in 2005, Zotzenberg is unique in Alsace for championing this variety, which elsewhere is often relegated to simple, everyday wines. Domaine Gilg’s Sylvaner was dry yet rich, with honeyed depth and a grapefruit-peel edge—qualities that underline how, in the right site and with careful winemaking, Sylvaner can rival the complexity of better-known grapes. This is a wine worth decanting to allow its layers of texture and flavour to open.
Crémant d’Alsace
Sparkling wine is another strength. Crémant d’Alsace is France’s largest sparkling category after Champagne, accounting for 36% of the region’s production. It’s enjoying considerable growth in the UK, and Alsace’s sparkling wines can be widely found in supermarkets, multiple retailers, independent merchants and online. Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Auxerrois, Riesling, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir can be used for Cremant, resulting in a range of styles but they all offer fresh and vibrant fizz at excellent value. Interesting to note that Guillame at Domain Mochel avoided using Riesling not liking the way it aged in lees, and it became clear as we tasted Cremant at every visit, that mostly Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, Auxerrois or Pinot Noir were used. Personally, I enjoyed the Cremant we tasted made from Pinot Blanc. Agathe Bursin’s expression was linear, precise, elegant and lemony, 20 months on the lees had added a light toasty complexity. Sadly it is proving difficult to track down in the UK, WoodWinter’s have a good range of Agathe’s wines but not the Cremant currently.
People and Places
Visiting Agathe was one of the most joyful visits of the trip. She welcomed us with warmth, her vineyards were beautiful, dotted with wildflowers and buzzing with bees, her wines full of character and energy. Another reminder why visiting a region is irreplaceable—learning about wine isn’t just about knowledge, but about the people who make it and bring it to our glasses.
Experimentation and Innovation
While tradition runs deep in Alsace, there’s also a strong spirit of innovation. Domaine Weinbach has been experimenting with amphora. Initially trying it with Riesling, they felt the variety lost its focus, but Pinot Gris worked well and this year they’ve filled it with Sylvaner, they’re excited by the effect. At Domaine Schoenheitz they are experimenting with types of wood, acacia is used for Riesling as it emphasises the fruit, some of their Pinot Noir is aged in mulberry wood—tight-grained and aromatic, it adds spice and perfume to the wines and is used in blend to add a little complexity. At Domaine Becht they’ve been working with skin contact, the picture below is the result of 4 days of Pinot Gris! In the pursuit of a true reflection of terroir at Domaine Marcel Deiss they practice co-plantation and field blending, all 13 Alsatian grape varieties are planted in the same vineyard, and harvested, pressed, and vinified at the same time.
Balance and Sweetness
Understanding Alsace also means understanding its approach to sweetness. The regions wines have to be labelled, sec (dry), demi-sec (medium-dry), moelleux (semi-sweet) or doux (sweet), a four-point scale that depends on the level or residual sugar (g/l) AND the level of acidity (g/l tartaric acid). High acidity can mask our ability to taste sweetness, so a wine with up to 9 g/L of residual sugar may still taste dry and therefore be labelled sec. Balance is everything here.
Thanks to Trevor Sharot AWE member for the photograph. Thanks for your permission to use it.
Selling Wine in Alsace
Cellar-door sales aren’t just for Australia or California—they matter in Alsace too. At Domaine Becht, 80% of sales are direct to visitors, while Domaine Weinbach sees around 35%, with the rest exported to markets including the UK, USA, Germany, and Japan. Many producers emphasised their focus on the restaurant trade, underlining Alsace’s reputation for food-friendly wines.
Food-Friendly
Alsace wines have been made for food. Alsatians love to eat, and their wines are made to go with rich, characterful dishes, as a result I’ve seen them appearing more and more on UK restaurant lists, where their diversity makes them a sommelier’s dream, thanks to their balance of freshness, aromatics, and texture. there’s always something from Alsace that’s going to work. Cremant as an aperitif, Riesling cutting through rich dishes, Gewurztraminer pairing with spice and Pinot Blanc handling creamy sauces with ease. Pinot Noir offers a versatile red option, light enough for fish and white meat and structured enough for game and red meats. I am reminded of a particularly fine dining experience at Scully in London where the Forbidden Rice served with Domaine Trapet’s A Minima Blanc was a particularly special pairing.
Thanks to Sue Eames AWE member for the photograph. Thanks for your permission to use it.
Final Thoughts
Alsace’s diversity—in terroir, grapes, and wine styles—was the perfect match for the diverse voices of the Association of Wine Educators—16 people from diverse backgrounds and roles, brought together by a love of wine, a passion for sharing joy, and a commitment to helping others shine. Sharing the experience with such a dynamic group was a fitting way to mark 20 years in wine education.
