In just a week, two very nice articles came out which add their views to the current and ever lasting Alsace Grand Cru debate...

First by Tom Stevenson (picture above) that appeared in The World of Fine Wine in which Tom wrote a very moving and personnal article about dear uncle Johnny. The author of The Wines of Alsace (Faber & Faber, 1993), did know Johnny particularly well. He was one of the first to react on our dedicated Blog page to the passing of Johnny by saying: "A small number of people have contributed so much to Alsace, but none more so than Johnny. I don't think that anyone would dispute that Johnny Hugel was the single most important person in the development of Alsace wine industry throughout the 20th century."
In his detailed article Tom expresses his views on how the Grand Cru system came into being, and much more very personnal stories about Johnny. A must read !

Second article from the November issue of Decanter, a very positive feature on Riesling Grand Cru 2007. The introduction by Sue Style takes all the inside knowledge of another reference on Alsace wines, as Sue has been living in our area for over 2 decades. Sue Style's explanations could well be an eye opener to many local growers... As our wines were not entered in this tasting, Decanter editor Guy Woodward kindly published the Hugel view on Grand Cru in his column "and another thing"...

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We are pleased to announce the recent publication of a book that is particularly important for the Alsace wine region, written by our friend Serge Dubs, in association with the journalist Denis Ritzenthaler.

After almost three years of serious research, Serge has successfully achieved his goal, the first in-depth handbook of the Grand Cru wines of Alsace. Without indulgence, it displays all the characteristic rigour, integrity and passion of one of the greatest connoisseurs and… supporters of Alsace wines. This work of reference will make its mark on our region and some of its comments will undoubtedly revive the dormant debate about Grand Cru wines, for example the following paragraph :

The house of Hugel in Riquewihr is certainly one of the most representative of Alsace negociants. It owns a large part of the Grand Cru Schoenenbourg and Sporen slopes. Renowned for its high quality wines, the house of Hugel has always advocated the best terroir. Its skill is exemplary and its quality image is renowned worldwide. Paradoxically, the « Hugels » do not sell their Grand Cru wines with the appellation AOC Alsace Grand Cru. Yet their Rieslings are among the finest grown on the Schoenenbourg. The house of Hugel has chosen a policy of promoting its brand because it believes the reputation of the name « Hugel » is superior to that of Grand Cru. This is their way of controlling the quality of the wines from its Grand Cru vineyards. Thus exceptional wines can be found under the simple appellation of AOC Alsace.

To learn more on the subject, discover our interactive "Hugel Earth" vineyard map