Saw this at WholeFoods/SantaFe last night, not a producer I'm familiar with, so sprung for a btl:
1. Helfrich GWT AC: Vin de Alsace (13%) Bttld by AM@Marlenheim/67520 Imported by UnderdogWineMerchants/Livermore 2007: Med.light gold color; lovely spicy/hair oil/lychee classic Alsatian GWT slight earthy nose; dry tart fairly lush attractive GWT/lychee/spicy/nutmeg/hair oil flavor; med. spicy/lychee/GWT/hair oil light earthy slightly bitter finish; a very attractive old-timey Alsatian GWT at a great price. $13.00
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And a wee BloodyPulpit:
1. Back in the good/old days, when I was discovering wine, in the early '70's (by crackey); I found Alsatian wines, particularly GWT. They were dry/tasty/vibrant/easy-drinking wines that went great w/ an Tarte a la Onion or a plate of weenies & kraut. Best of all...they were cheap.....you could drink them on a daily basis and not mortgage the house or sell off your first-born son. I was buying Hugel and BottFreres and Dopff at $4-$5/btl. And loving them.
But that all changed...sigh. In the early '80's, Alsatian wines were made in a bigger/more alcoholic/more intense/lower acid/sometimes off-dry/suss-reserve style. With this new style, mostly by Z-H, and the gobs of hedonistic fruit; these wines started to get huge scores from wine critics...Alsace was now "discovered" and no longer a vinous backwater of easy-drinking/inexpensive whites. The wines were put on a pedestal and worshiped...the prices climbed into the double-digits...now triple-digits. The were no longer wines to drink w/ your weenies & kraut...they were wines to pontificate over. The Alsace GWT landscape was changed forever.....sigh.
Well...I'm here to tell you....this Helfrich GWT took me back to those wonderful days of yester-year. A good/tasty/food-friendly GWT that is cheap. Glory be.
Tom