2022 Famille Hugel Riesling Classic

This dry Riesling stands out for its finesse and frankness and is the ideal partner to fish and seafood thanks to its wonderful balance and elegance. The robe's sparkling youthfulness give it eye-catching bright green highlights. At first this Riesling’s aromas are dashing, wellstated and floral, opening with hints of lily of the valley, elderflower and lively citrus zest. With age it takes on rocky hints of flint, tinder, hydrocarbons. The perfectly dry flavour detonates with life, energy and a clearly stated attack that remains without greenness and opens up the appetite. Lemon, lime and yusu zest roll around the mouth right up to the acidic, delicate and addictive final note.

If proof needs be of climate change, 2022 is once again an earliest vintage in history in Alsace. But one not to rush into starting
the picking. Once again winter was mild and budbreak as early as April 5th in Riquewihr, luckily making the episode of frost of
April 3rd painless across most of the region. The hot conditions of May and June (26 to 32° all along) made for most of the
earliness of the vintage with blooming May 23rd and especially drought conditions across all of France until harvest making for a
very healthy crop. Acidity levels are low, and ripeness levels very high. Quality is extra across the board and the wines dense and
concentrated. Hugel started picking 8 days after the rest of Alsace on September 12th and rightly did so, and finished in just over
3 weeks, a record speed. 2022 will be a benchmark vintage for Pinot Noirs especially.
IN THE VINEYARD
Made exclusively from hand harvested grapes from predominantly clay and limestone vineyards, in a dozen of the most favored
localities in and around Riquewihr. A cool and long growing season give this unique dry wine great finesse and unequalled
intensity.
WINEMAKING
The grapes are taken in small tubs to the presses, which are filled by gravity, without any pumping or other mechanical
intervention. After pressing, the must is decanted for a few hours, then fermented in temperature-controlled vats (at 18°C to
24°C). The wine is racked just once, before natural clarification during the course of the winter. The following spring, the wine is
lightly filtered just before bottling, and the bottles are then aged in our cellars until released for sale. The whole production of this
wine is closed with DIAM the cork without the risk of cork taint.