Napa is Lust, but Alsace is Love
When people think of wine destinations, their brain often goes straight to Napa Valley, Bordeaux, or Tuscany. When I first started exploring wine, I too thought of these places as the “mecca” of wine, the Disneylands of sorts that would scratch all the itches for any wine drinker. Coincidentally, I found myself drawn to Riesling at the time and started to search for the best places Riesling grew, and since I still lived in Europe at the time, Alsace was the go-to for Rieslings. Alsace, the northeastern part of France, and an area that has been contested between France and Germany throughout history, which lends itself to the blend of French and German influence in both food and wine. Soon after my research on Riesling, my wife and I plotted a trip to Colmar, France which is in the middle of the “Alsace Wine Route” and made it our hub for the entirety of our trip where we would visit as many of the beautiful little towns that make up the route and are home to some of the finest white wines in the world.
Colmar is a beautiful city, where old and new mesh together and give tourists a fun look into the region, the people, and the cuisine. It serves as a great central location for anyone looking to explore the nearby towns via car or the numerous biking paths that traverse the Alsace. From there we ventured both north and south, visiting some well-known Wineries such as Wolfberger, and JB Adam. However, it was the smaller, family-owned wineries, tucked away in the stunning towns of Eguisheim and Ribeauville that forever changed me and my appreciation for the vins d’alsace.
While in the town of Bennwihr (15 min North of Colmar), we visited the Bestheim Winery, with a quaint little tasting room tucked away off the main road. The staff there were so hospitable, forgiving me for my less than awesome French speaking, and entertained us with stories of the winery, and nice full glasses of their best Rieslings and Cremants. What made it most interesting to me was the fact that the entire vineyard which grew the grapes of this specific Grand Cru, was a stone’s throw away from us, in the Schlossberg appellation which provides some of the region’s best varietals. As we finished our tasting and walked out towards the vineyards that surround the town, I found myself getting emotional as I walked into the vines I was drinking, thinking about the stories told about this place, the love and thought that went into each bottle, and the beauty of this place where towns didn’t surround vineyards, but the vineyards enclosed the towns like a protective moat. It was then and there that I fell in love with Wine and all its artistry.
The remainder of the Alsace wine route is no less magical, with gorgeous towns like Eguisheim, that are so picturesque you would think it was fake. Fun fact: the town square in Eguisheim has a large fountain and little Bavarian style houses that became inspiration for the town featured in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast!
We all have our “fall in love moments” when it comes to wine, whether it was a Girls get-a-way trip, or a Bachelor party, 21st birthday, or simply curiosity turned obsession. In a place like Alsace, which is as historic as it is beautiful, it is easy to see past the bottles and really get a feel for the people who put such love in their grapes and their communities. If you’re ever in eastern France, give it a quick visit, and I promise you’ll fall in love just the same.