Zind-Humbrecht '05s and '06s: Premox and other concerns
Vin Vino Wine, Palo Alto, California
Tasted Tuesday, August 3, 2010 - Wednesday, August 4, 2010 by rjonwine@gmail.com with 1,349 views
Introduction
Vin Vino's Rebecca
This was a troublesome tasting. I've had numerous delicious, concentrated Zind-Humbrecht SGNs and Vendage Tardives over the years, which have aged well. I've also had a lot of semi-dry Zind-Humbrechts that aged well. Nonetheless, in this tasting, over two days, of 14 recent vintage Z-H Muscats, Gewurzes, Rieslings and Pinot Grises, at least six were showing signs of premature oxidation, and only a couple of them were really superior examples of the region and style. in searches since this tasting, I've seen several notes from others referring to premox problems with Zind-Humbrechts in the past several years. Is there something going on with this estate, much like so many white Burgundy producers, that we need to worry about? This tasting suggests there is.
I've scoured Olivier Humbrecht's annual vintage reports for some clue as to what was wrong with the wines in this tasting that showed so poorly, and I can't come up with any real clues. Olivier's notes suggest that they're all high acid winners, regardless of the residual sugar content--that they're all simply brilliant. That just wasn't my experience, though, with this line up. Is his complete change to biodynamic principles creating problems; is there too much batonnage and lees stirring (the latest theory for so much premox amongst white Burgs); or were the '06 and '03 vintages just way, way worse than Olivier indicated in his annual reports?
Vin Vino buys a lot of its stock through Kermit Lynch, and Zind-Humbrecht got a divorce from Kermit Lynch, signing up instead with importers and distributors The Sorting Table for the '07 vintage. So Vin Vino stopped carrying them. As a result of the distribution channel disruption, I haven't had much chance to taste recent vintage Zind-Humbrechts for the last few years before this tasting. The following excerpt from Vin Vino's current newsletter, however, suggests even deeper problems than the change in distribution with recent vintages of Z-H: "Zind-Humbrecht used to be highly sought after. No more. No one has inquired about the last two vintages, which we had the wisdom not to buy. Looking back, three factors derailed Zind-Humbrecht. First, Robert Parker stopped reviewing Alsace wines. His love of Zind-Humbrecht, and plethora of scores in the high 90s for them, drove many wine lovers to collect them, many hwo didn't buy any other Alsatian wines. Second, prices went way, way up. What had been bargains became precious collector's items. Finally, Olivier Humbrecht's winemaking became less steady, to the point one no longer knew what to expect stylistically, a big departure from the consistency of earlier years. It's killed the brand, at least for now." Vin Vino was offering their remaining stock of Zind-Humbrecht for 50% off.
As always, I've got to be honest and tell you exactly what I'm tasting. I'd much rather these be delicious wines I could recommend, and that would justify their high scores over the years. Unfortunately, with the exception of the two decent Pinot Grises at the end of the tasting, that just wasn't my experience with these wines. I'm putting this post out there as a "buyer beware," and as a call for readers who have had any premox experience with recent vintage Z-H's to please share that with the rest of us.
Flight 1 - Pinot d'Alsace (1 Note)
This one was oxidized and played out on the palate. After only three years?
Flight 2 - Muscats (2 Notes)
Neither of these were very good. The '06 was oxidized and downright awful. Say it ain't so, Mr. O.
Flight 3 - Gewurzes (3 Notes)
These Gewurzes, from three different vineyards and two recent vintages, were just a little above average, when I expect a lot more from Z-H Gewurzes. The '05 Hengst was oxidized and low in acid for a recent vintage Grand Cru. None of them were worth the high prices that Z-H currently charges for these wines.
Flight 4 - Riesling (mainly Clos Windsbuhl) (4 Notes)
These were very disappointing Rieslings. The '03 was flat and boring. The '06 Clos Windsbuhl, from Z-H's third greatest Riesling vineyard, was oxidized. I buy much more enjoyable German Rieslings for much less money year after year. I think there's a serious problem here.
Flight 5 - Pinot Gris (4 Notes)
The '06 Clos Winsbuhl Pinot Gris was the best of this tasting, and the '06 Vieilles Vignes wasn't far behind. The '03 Heimbourg was oxidized and flat. Have we been oversold on this producer? There are better Pinot Grises available in Alsace for much less money. I believe the SGNs and VTs from this estate are probably just as great as always, but Z-H is producing, on average, about 35 different wines a year. This tasting was strong evidence that Olivier has gotten complacent, and/or somehow let things slip with the middle range wines from this estate. After this tasting, I could no longer buy Zind-Humbrecht with any confidence, and would definitely need to taste before I bought.
2006 Zind-Humbrecht Pinot d'Alsace 83 Points
France, Alsace
(8/3/2010)
Light medium golden yellow color; tart pear, mineral, baked pear, baked lemon, cheesecloth nose; oxidized, baked pear, tangy pear nectar palate, lacking the expressiveness of the nose; medium finish
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