Trimbach

Trimbach is one of the great wine families of Europe. Currently run by the 12th generation, it was established in 1626, the same year that Charles I dissolved Parliament and Peter Minuit bought Manhattan from the Native Americans. The estate itself is based in the achingly beautiful medieval village of Ribeauvillé, its pastel-coloured half-timbered houses surrounded by the slopes where the family grow most of their grapes. The so-called ‘Ribeauvillé Fault’ has a dizzying array of soil types, from limestone and marl to sandstone, gneiss and granite. This geological variety, coupled with seriously old vines (average age 45 years old) gives Trimbach a wide range of wine styles and expressions – the one unifying characteristic (beyond general excellence) being that, apart from the late harvest versions, all the wines are dry.

Riesling is famously reflective of its terroir, and Trimbach’s Grand Cru range is a stunning collection of old-vine wines from A-list vineyard sites that are all markedly different, from the crystalline purity of Schlossberg to the intensity and finesse of Geisberg. The Clos St Hune (just 7,000 bottles made a year) is coveted by Riesling lovers all over the world and, with its exceptional minerality and length, can age for decades.