The wines of Albert Boxler, Alsace

Albert Boxler
Visiting France's Alsace wine region, part 5

I was looking forward to this visit, with Jean Boxler and his family domain in Niedermorschwihr, another impossibly pretty Alsace village. Jean has 13.5 hectares of vines and this has been the family business since 1673. Albert Boxler, whose name the domain bears, was Jean's father.

It was in 1946 that Jean's grandfather began to bottle his own wines. His cousin, a painter, designed the labels, which they use to this day.

The wines are superb, demonstrating precision and elegance. We hopped into Jean's Berlingo after the tasting and had a look at some of the vineyards. These are varied in aspect and slope. Proper vineyards. One of my favourite Alsace domains, and one that deserves wider recognition.

Boxler uses letters as codes on the label that can need some deciphering. It's a way of giving information without breaching labelling regulations.

THE WINES

Albert Boxler Pinot Blanc B 2010 Alsace, France
B stands for Brand. Creamy, appley, lively and fruity on the nose. The palate is fruity, mineral and bright with good acidity and grapefruity precision. 91/100

Albert Boxler Riesling 2010 Alsace, France
From parcels on the top and side of Sommerberg, one granite and one limestone. Pure, fine, citrus and mineral with lively acidity. Dry, fine, precise and mineral. 92/100

Albert Boxler Riesling Grand Cru Sommerberg 2010 Alsace, France
Fine, mineral and precise with apple, herb and a hint of honey on the nose. The palate is taut with apple, pear and mineral notes. Hints of nuts, too. 92/100

Albert Boxler Riesling Grand Cru Sommerberg E 2010 Alsace, France
E stands for Egbert which is the upper part of this Grand Cru vineyard. Wonderfully aromatic, with citrus, herbs and grapefruit. So lively and mineral. Incredible acidity on the palate which shows citrus, grapefruit and complex mineral notes. Bone dry, linear and laser-sharp. 'It's still a baby,' says Jean Boxler. 94/100

Albert Boxler Riesling Grand Cru Sommerberg D 2010 Alsace, France
D stands for Dudentslein, 66 year old vines. An early ripening parcel that can sometimes be sweet. Taut, mineral and precise nose is amazingly complex leading to a taut palate with spice, fine grapefruit and a bit of white peach richness. There's a nice texture here. 94/100

Albert Boxler Riesling Grand Cru Brand K 2010 Alsace, France
K is for Kirchberg. Brand has granite/sand soils and is warmer than Sommerberg. Taut, mineral, pithy lemon fruit with some pear and apple richness offset by high acidity. Nice precise citrussy fruit. 92/100

Albert Boxler Pinot Gris Reserve 2010 Alsace, France
Some nice grapey, spicy, slightly smoky notes on the nose. The palate is textured and off-dry with lovely sweet pure pear and melon notes. Rounded and balanced with fine acidity. Lovely purity. 94/100

Albert Boxler Pinot Gris Grand Cru Brand 2010 Alsace, France
Off-dry and sweet with lovely melon, herb and citrus characters, as well as some honeyed richness. Ripe, smooth and a bit nutty. 91/100

Albert Boxler Pinot Gris Grand Cru Brand S 2010 Alsace, France
S is for Steinglitz, a parcel of old vines. Taut, grapey and slightly smoky on the nose. The palate is lively with notes of grape, grapefruit and citrus, as well as honey and spice. Rich and textured with some sweetness and lively acidity. 94/100

Albert Boxler Pinot Gris Grand Cru Sommerberg 2010 Alsace, France
Open, sweet, grapey nose with a hint of bacon. Nutty, honeyed, rounded and off-dry. Notes of baked apple. Smooth and sweet. 93/100

Albert Boxler Gerwurztraminer Reserve 2010 Alsace, France
This comes from Heimbourg. Lively, grapey nose with sweet lychee and rose petal with some savoury notes. Rich, broad-textured palate with sweet lychee, peach and spice. Great concentration. A sweet but balanced wine. 94/100

Albert Boxler Gewurztraminer Grand Cru Brand 2010 Alsace, France
Concentrated, powerful and rich with intense peach and pear fruit and some grape and lychee.Very sweet and intense with good concentration and fine acidity balancing the sweetness. 94/100

Albert Boxler Gewurztraminer Grand Cru Brand Vendanges Tardives 2007 Alsace, France
Powerful, intense, textured and sweet with broad melon, pear, peach and pineapple notes. Viscous and rich with some creaminess. Soft, honeyed and luscious. 94/100

Albert Boxler Pinot Gris Grand Cru Sommerberg SGN 2008 Alsace, France
Powerful, lively and intense with luscious peach, spice and apricot characters. Very sweet and still fresh and youthful with some minerality and good balancing acidity. 94/100

VISITING ALSACE
Part 1, Paul Blanck
Part 2, Clement Klur
Part 3, Schlumberger
Part 4, Zind Humbrecht
Part 5, Albert Boxler
Part 6, Dirler-Cadé
Part 7, Josmeyer
Part 8, Weinbach
Part 9, Hugel
Part 10, Léon Beyer

Wines tasted 06/12
Find these wines with wine-searcher.com

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