Wine
The ruins of three castles watch over the city which is part of the Pearls of the Alsatian vineyard. It is here that the oldest cooperative winery in France can boast of owning a unique monopoly in Alsace, the Clos du Zahnacker.
Latest edition : 24 March 2021
The history of the Ribeauvillé cellar dates back to 1895. The annexation of Alsace by the German Empire caused the decline of the vineyard. Winegrowers from the small town then decided to unite to better face the crisis.
Times have changed a lot since then. The Cave de Ribeauvillé is one of the best cooperative cellars in Alsace. The Revue des Vins de France named it Cooperative Winery of the Year in 2016, Wine & Spirit magazine distinguished it as Winery of the Year in 2014.
Deserved accolades. “Currently, we have 40 cooperators, all 100% winegrowers, explains Yves Baltenweck, president and whose grandfather was co-founder of the cellar. “We all know each other, which facilitates cohesion in the management of the vineyard. This work in good intelligence allowed us to obtain HVE level 3 certification in 2019. But we already had our own quality charter since 2001 concerning tillage, limitation of yields or limitation of products. phytosanitary. All the vines are harvested manually. By 2023, 23% of our vines will be grown organically. (HVE: high environmental value).
The 235 ha of vines of the cellar are located on hillsides on the largest geological fault of the Rhine. A geological richness that delights Evelyne Bleger-Cognacq, oenologist and technical manager of the cellar. Even if it means extra work. “This great variability of land requires a lot of parcel selection, very precise and detailed blending.
Ribeauvillé is the perfect terroir for Riesling: lots of limestone which gives the grape variety good acidity, a perfect microclimate…”.
Moreover, if the cellar produces the complete palette of the seven Alsatian grape varieties (sylvaner, muscat, white, gray and red pinots, riesling, gewurztraminer), it is the riesling which is particularly represented. Nothing surprising in this when you know that it is the grape variety that expresses the terroir particularly well and that the vines of the cellar include 8 Grands Crus and Lieux dits.
At the nursery
The Cellar offers between 70 and 80 references, which is rather surprising given the surface area of the vineyard. “It's the consequence of the great variety of subsoil, of the many plot selections. Sometimes it's a real work of lace, smiles the oenologist. To better understand, head to the large winery.
There, a panel intrigues: "Nursery". It is here that some 70 small vats from 1 to 80 hectoliters make it possible to vinify very small quantities, sometimes corresponding to less than 300 bottles! This is also one of the strengths of the cellar, this multitude of particular expressions. Not to mention the range of kosher wines.
The legendary Clos du Zahnacker
The greatest pride of the Cave de Ribeauvillé is the Clos du Zahnacker (1.24 ha), located in the heart of the Grand Cru Osterberg. Le Clos dates back to at least the 8th century. The first recorded owner was Martin Zahn, a knight monk.
It was he who gave it its name, Zahnacker, the field of Zahn (acker means fields in Alsatian). Its particularity: the traditional complantation of three noble grape varieties, Riesling, Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer. Each grape variety is harvested separately, according to its maturity. But then, and unlike other grape varieties, they are vinified together. No vintage is therefore like the other, highlighting one or the other of the three grape varieties depending on the year. “A real harmony is created, which is not the result of the blend but of the Clos,” says the oenologist.
A great peace emerges from this enclosure delimited by a dry stone wall. For Evelyne Bleger-Cognacq, the site is a bit magical. Perhaps because Carola's hot springs flowing underground make it the first plot to thaw at the end of winter? Perhaps also because of the groups of giant sculptures, the work of the French sculptor Christian Lapie. Seven groups of three refined oak statues are visible from afar. For the artist, they represent the seven stages in the vinification of the three grape varieties.
Something to draw the eye to the vineyard which produces a royal wine, since Louis XIV would have tasted it – and appreciated it. The goose he supposedly drank from is, moreover, carefully preserved in the town hall of Ribeauvillé, and it naturally appears on the label of the bottles.
In the vault
Another artist welcomes visitors to the cellar: Ted Scapa has entirely decorated two giant bottles that flank the entrance door. And since making good wine is quite an art, the vast tasting cellar also offers an exhibition space for works by artists.
Claude de Ribeaupierre, one of the descendants of the counts of Ribeaupierre who owned the castles overlooking Ribeauvillé. Derib, his artist name, created boxes and drawings for the cellar.
In the basement, a small museum of the vine tells the work of the winegrowers of yesteryear. A visit that then allows you to appreciate the tasting even better!
Cave de Ribeauvillé Martin Zahn
2 route de Colmar
68150 Ribeauvillé
+33 389736180
www.vins-ribeauvillé.com