Very excited to be visiting Alsace for the first time. I haven’t been writing full-time about wine for all that long (4 years), so there are still a number of important wine regions I have yet to visit. So I am pleased to finally get the chance to see Alsace: I know and love the wines, but wine regions really come to life once you’ve actually been there.

We arrived just after 7 pm at Basel airport, and within an hour we were in Colmar, our base for the next few days. It looks beautiful. Two interesting wines taken from the wine list of a modest bistro proved to be just right with dinner.

First, Weinbach’s Clos des Capuchins Sylvaner 2010. Beautifully fresh with a nice tangerine edge to the fresh citrussy fruit. Very lively and bright and quite delicious.

Then Trimbach’s Riesling Cuvee Frederic Emile 2005: taut, complex and really serious with an almost spicy edge to the citrussy fruit. A really great expression of Riesling.

Now it’s time for bed to prepare for a day we’ll be spending mostly in the vineyards. I’m so looking forward to it.