An unpretentious but distinctly drinkable Alsace Gewurztraminer

I am a rabidly enthusiastic janissary of Jean Boxler – his wines tweak my fun bits in royal style. That being said, I normally drink his Rieslings, and generally they are of a much flasher provenance than a humble generic. However, even if this is not at the quality zenith of Alsace wines, I’m rather savouring its urbane personality.

The problem one usually encounters with Gewurztraminer is that they can go too far down the flabby, booze-tastic path. This makes drinking more than a glass a draining experience and can result in getting distinctly tired and emotional (tired and emotional as a newt, that is). Zind-Humbrecht are the arch masters of these overblown concoctions and I find them to be utterly devoid of pleasure. This wine is a vastly different beast from such loathsome atrocities.

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Gewurztraminer 2008, Albert Boxler

Crivens, it is a Gewurztraminer with an understated nose! I’m slightly surprised but deeply encouraged by this, the wine will not be a chore to drink. Certainly it does have shades of foam banana[ref]If you don’t know what foam bananas are then cast your eyes on this multitude of them[/ref] fruit and pain epice notes I’d expect in any good Gewurz, but they are understated compared to the powerful minerality that suffuses the nose. It is refreshingly sedate on the alcohol front as well – this is a generic of polished, elegant class. The palate is about as refreshing as this variety will ever manage, there are commendable acidity levels here which are very welcome and gives it more than an approximation of being mouth-watering. The rambutan/lychee fruit is far from over-whelming and the same goes for the undemanding alcohol level – there is no lingering afterburn when I swallow a mouthful. The stony character of the palate persists with the fruit for long enough, and I am taken with the dimension it shows. True, it is not the smallest scale, most exquisitely sculpted wine one is likely to encounter, but there is proper harmony and more than enough refined complexity for a wine at this quality level. Good stuff that is up for drinking.

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