Regarding prestige, history, and what we simply call the ‘gotta-have’ factor, Grand Cru “Rosacker” is to Alsace as Grand Cru “Montrachet” is to Burgundy. When it comes to single vineyards, it hardly gets more hallowed and rarefied than Rosacker, from which some of the world’s greatest Rieslings have sprung over the past 500 years.
This gold-standard terroir is located in the idyllic, stone-built village of Hunawihr and has been a perennial source for some of France’s greatest dry Riesling—most notably, Trimbach’s $300-and-up “Clos Sainte Hune.” Sourced from the center of Rosacker, this is a wine possessing astounding complexity, rip-roaring minerality, and seemingly limitless aging potential (a recent tasting of their 1990 was legendary.) My point is, elite sites such as Rosacker are transcendent patches of ancient earth that have nurtured countless vine life cycles over the centuries. Accordingly, owning any piece of land here is a monumental achievement in and of itself. Although the Mader’s tiny Grand Cru Riesling parcel doesn’t even get close to approaching a single hectare, they cherish their 60+-year-old vines to the fullest extent by farming organically and biodynamically. The result is a phenomenal dry Riesling displaying immensely lush layers, mineral profundity, and breathtaking precision. It’s an exceptional wine right now, but make no mistake: Mader’s Rosacker is a certified blue-chip collectible for those who own a cellar. We’re the first in the country to offer this delicious ‘18 release—only 20 cases available!
Jean-Luc and Anne Mader founded their family domaine in 1981, after having worked at the local winemaking cooperative. These days they’re ably assisted by their son, Jérome, who now oversees most of the work in the vineyards and cellar. Headquartered right in Hunawihr, their vineyard holdings span roughly 10 hectares, which they farm organically (and, more recently, biodynamically). As is so often the case in the bucolic hills of Alsace, everything is done by hand from start to finish, and typically the Mader whites incorporate significant percentages of whole bunches in their fermentations, lending depth and longevity to the wines.
The Rosacker Grand Cru, which covers 26 hectares (of which about half is planted to Riesling), is widely regarded as a “holy grail” Riesling site, thanks at least in part to the legend of “Clos Ste. Hune.” The Mader family’s tiny holding (well under one hectare) is rooted a little higher up the slope, and consists of 60+-year-old, Certified Organic vines. In the cellar, their hand-harvested fruit is subjected to a long, slow fermentation in stainless steel and left on its lees until bottling the following summer.
When Jacqueline Freidrich published The Wines of France fourteen years ago, she wrote that “Mader’s wines from Grand Cru Rosacker steal the show.” Having hunted down and savored the last five vintages, I’ve come to a simple conclusion: Not only is she right, but these sensational wines keep improving too—today’s 2018 is a luxurious stunner, and easily my favorite bottling in years. As always with Mader, their Rosacker erupts with vivid minerality, citrus blossoms, and surges of tropical savor. In the glass, this Grand Cru Riesling effuses ripe mango, green and yellow apples, Kaffir lime, lemon curd, gooseberry, Asian guava, honeysuckle, white flowers, smoke, melon peel, crushed stone, and struck flint. The palate is gorgeous, full of lush exotic fruit layers and savory/stony minerality alongside enlivening acidity. I go nuts for these wines because of how they manage to be paradoxically rich and lean at the same time—Riesling always seems to pull off the impossible like no other white grape. When enjoying, do so after a 30-60-minute decant in all-purpose white stems, but don’t pull all your corks prematurely! With its incredible structure, it has the ability to age wonderfully over the next decade and beyond. If you’re a Riesling freak, you’re going to lose your mind over this—we promise!
