1976 Riesling Clos St Hune

‘A hot and dry year. Harvesting began on September 20.’ Clos Ste Hune harvested in October at a potential alcohol of 13%. After 1959, this was the hottest vintage in Alsace at the time. Giscard d’Estaing brought in new tax, a drought tax. 20% noble rot. ‘ Hugel’s Riesling SGN 1976 was a great sweet wine’, said Jean Trimbach, ‘and we made some vendanges tardives, but my father [Bernard Trimbach] decided to put everything together. I’m very glad he did because this wine is spectacular.’ RS 4.6 g/l, TA 6.6 g/l. Limpid dark amber. Very mature, exotic nose. Layers of mahogany and dried fruit and quite enough acidity. Amazingly fresh! Great balance. Not sweet but certainly not drying out. Quite long. (JR)

The aromas are fully matured, with a wealth of dried peach and apricot, candied orange and toasted nuts. Fabulous richness and concentration on the astonishingly vibrant, medium- to full-bodied palate. Amalfi-lemon freshness at the very long finish, and this will surely give it many more years of life. No doubt this has a generous alcoholic content and there was some botrytis on the grapes, but you don’t directly feel either of them at the extremely long finish. Drink or hold.

Golden in hue, Trimbach's 1976 Riesling Clos Ste. Hune is fully mature, with plenty of dried stone fruit, herb, licorice, crushed flower and hazelnut nuances. Based on its intensity and depth the 1976 will likely hold on for at least a few years, but it won't improve materially from here. This bottle, sadly, is a victim, of a less than perfect cork, but at the very least one can see that it has held up well.