This is not just a wine—it’s a swan song from one of Alsace’s most revered and uncompromising artisans. With Grand Cru Alsace still offering triple-digit quality at double-digit pricing, the 2020 Marc Tempé Riesling Grand Cru “Mambourg” is a rare gem that delivers elegance and mineral precision on par with Grand Cru White Burgundy—at a fraction of the price.
And now, the curtain has closed. Marc and Anne-Marie officially retired after the 2022 harvest, leasing their 8.5 hectares to three promising young domaines. With no successors and no further vintages to come, this 2020 “Mambourg” is not just a wine—it’s a final chapter in one of Alsace’s most soulful stories. The Tempés still have a few bottles to sell, but even their own cellar is nearly bare. Some cuvées are gone without a trace—not even a single bottle remains for memory’s sake.
Only 125 cases of this wine were produced, and we secured four of them. This offering is pure cult: a bone-dry, biodynamic Grand Cru Riesling from a now-closed domaine whose wines were never made for mass appeal, only for those who understood. Once gone, it’s gone.
Marc and Anne-Marie Tempé began their biodynamic journey in 1993, cultivating nearly 20 acres around the storied village of Zellenberg in the Haut-Rhin. Their commitment to purity and terroir earned them cult status among connoisseurs, with Marc often described as “the artisans’ artisan.” From vines planted in 1952, this half-acre parcel in Mambourg is a true rarity—not only for its age and elevation, but because Riesling makes up just 5% of this Grand Cru’s plantings, which Gewurztraminer and Pinot Gris dominate.
Mambourg itself is one of Alsace’s oldest and steepest Grand Crus, documented as far back as 783 AD. Marc’s parcel sits high on the slope, where iron-rich limestone soils and intense sun exposure yield a wine of profound mineral tension and length. Aged for two years on lees in neutral oak, this Riesling is textured, saline, and endlessly elegant.
Marc Tempé is revered for his uncompromising style. A former INAO technician and vineyard expert, he helped shape Alsace’s Grand Cru system before founding his domaine. His wines are never chaptalized, acidified, or filtered, and fermentation is always spontaneous. In 1999, Léonard Humbrecht of Zind-Humbrecht called Marc his “spiritual godson”—a nod to the depth and integrity of Tempé’s winemaking, though his wines remain far more accessible in price.
Press Accolades:
98 Points, Wine Advocate:
“ … opens with a unique nose of iron-rich limestone rather than fruit. Full-bodied, refined and very elegant on the palate, this is a round, finessed and persistently saline Riesling with fine tannins, lots of salts and a clear cut on the long and intense finish. This is a beautiful Riesling with the nature of Pinot Noir, with so delicate and refined tannins and this endless elegance and mineral tension. A beautiful wine. 13.5% stated alcohol. Natural cork. - Stephan Reinhardt - Tasted at the domaine in November 2024.
95 Points, Vinous Media:
“A lovely flicker of flint flashes on the shy nose. This flinty notion continues on the palate, expanding into exquisite saltiness, mouth-watering, smooth and soothing with cool limestone, bracing and zesty. There's so much energy, drive and elan. Wow. - - Anne Krebiehl MW on January 2024
