Vintage years

The great Osterberg vintage years: 1971, 1975, 1976, 1983, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1995, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011.

Location

This terroir belongs to the Ribeauvillé fault mosaic. Essentially facing east and incredibly sunny, its slopes sit in a privileged location of varied steepness – between 10° and 30°. Bordered to the west by the Geisberg and Kirchberg de Ribeauvillé Grands Crus, it completes the trilogy of the Ribeauvillé Grands Crus.

Soil

The soil is full of clay and pebbles and sits on coquina rock from Muschelkalk formations, formed thousands of years ago by the collapse of the Upper Rhine Plain. To the east they are mostly formed from dolomitic limestone and multi-coloured marl from the Lettenkohle formation.

Microclimate

Facing south/south-east, this terroir has incredible sunlight. In the west part, on the neighbouring Kirchberg and Geisberg, it also benefits from the phenomenon of fresh and evening winds (Tahl wendala) which comes down from the Aubure valley. These winds temper the summer days, allowing for slow and extended ripening of grapes, thus preserving the wine aromas and acidity. (This sector is mostly planted with Riesling).

Grape varieties

As Serge Dubs and Denis Ritzenthaler point out, «the marl-calcareous-sandstone soil of this terroir (…) creates a well-balanced cocktail able to produce great wines. (…) The four authorised grape varieties grow wonderfully. This complicates the choice of producers in charge of objectively determining the most capable of giving the binding spirit between this terroir and the varietal. (Dubs, Les Grands Crus d’Alsace, p. 159).

This source of richness is attested by the presence of Clos du Zahnacker on this Grand Cru, where there has been complantation for nine centuries.

Heritage transmission

Osterberg became part of the other Grands Crus in 1992, but it was already mentioned in documents dating back to the Middle Ages and the Lords of Ribeaupierre owned their vineyards. In regards to Ribeauvillé, Michel Mastrojanni points out:

Imperial town, former fiefdom of the powerful Ribeaupierre family which dominating it during the 13th century up until the Revolution (by also planting numerous vineyards in the region, from Ammerschwihr to Rodern), the Fiddlers’ town was bestowed many privileges and benefited from continuous wine-making prosperity.

Michel Mastrojanni, Le grand livre des vins d’Alsace, Solar, 1993, p. 82

The same author can also be thanked for telling the history of the Clos du Zahnacker:

This illustrious clos, which today belongs to the cooperative wine-making cellar, was initially owned by the Benedictine abbey of Ribeauvillé. Tradition has it that during the 12th century, a certain Zahn, monk-knight, had brought back the best grape varieties from the Holy Land and had planted them here. In 1426, the German emperor Sigismond, wanting to be allied with King Eric, sovereign of Sweden, Norway and Denmark, had a barrel of Zahnacker wine transported by water until Lubeck and which the imperial ambassador then offered to the Nordic royal court. It is also Zahnacker wine – by then it was in the hands of Ribeauvillé lords – which was served to Louis XIV during his stay in Ribeauvillé in 1673, and this in a spectacular silver-gilt hanap, still visible today in the small city hall museum. The Clos never departed from its original identity: 120 years of pebbly marl, forming a triangle at mid-hill within the Osterberg, and complanted on either side with noble varietals (currently a third Riesling, Gewurztraminer and Pinot Gris).

Op.cit., p. 88

This demanding terroir obliges wine-makers to limit production using different methods. The old, low-yielding vines are still numerous. There is rigorous pruning which allows to control the production potential.