Our specialties

Rouge d'Ottrott

Available in 750 ml and 375ml bottles. Vintage 2015 et 2017

Vine type : Pinot Noir

Wine type : Light Alsatian red wine, with a splendid ruby colour, red-fruit fragrance that reminds of ripe cherries.

Vineyard and history : This is the only communal label for red wine in Alsace to be recognized by the INAO (National Institute of Labels of Origin), whose vineyard is exclusively located in the Ottrott town limits (6 km north of Barr). Southeast exposure, exclusively Pinot Noir vine plants. The Rouge d’Ottrott origin dates back to the 11th century, when the Benedictine monks of the Saint-Leonard monastery in Burgundy settled in Alsace. Longing for Burgundy red wines, they looked for the soil best suited for the Pinot Noir vine they had brought with them. Methodical trials led them to return to Ottrott whose micro-climate, sandy and clayey soil with siliceous pebbles ideally suited the vine. They introduced the Alsatian wine growers to the very special art of making a Pinot Noir red wine. The tradition has been maintained ever since. Today, most of the Ottrott vineyard is still planted with Pinot Noir, although this vine only represents 5 % of the vine planting in Alsace.

Harvesting, wine-making and ageing : For Charles Wantz, the Rouge d’Ottrott wine has to be made according to traditional practice. Manual harvest, then grape selection and sorting-out, separation, grape maceration with rempontage, then pressing with alcoholic fermentation. The fermentation is permanently monitored with very modern equipment that enables the control of the fermentation temperature.

How to serve it : Drink this wine cool, but not too cold. When young, we recommend to serve it at a temperature between 12° to 14° C. After 3 or 4 years, a temperature of 16° to 18° C will be more suitable, enabling the wine to better express itself.

How to keep it : This wine may be kept 3 to 4 years in a cool cellar at a constant temperature of between 10° and 14° C. Store the bottles flat, with the cork in contact with the wine in order to avoid drying-out.

What to drink it with : Rouge d’Ottrott is a pleasant red wine that can be enjoyed on all occasions. It can be served with an entire meal and especially with grilled meats.

Klevener de Heiligenstein

Available in 750 ml bottles. Vintage 2016

Vine type : Klevener de Heiligenstein – Savagnin rose

Wine type : Dry, fruity, smooth white wine with a delicate and elegant touch of acidity, sometimes hidden by the heady side of the very ripe vintages. It encompasses the nose with complex floral fragrances , often mixed with spicy touches. Full-bodied and noble white wine, with a walnut-like fragrance

Vineyard and history : A statue erected at the pediment of the town hall in the village of Heiligenstein reminds that, in 1742, one of our ancestors, Ehret Wantz, burgomaster of Heiligenstein, was granted permission by the Strasbourg Aldermen to extend the town limit in order to plant an original vine : the Klevener which, according to the legend, would have been brought back from Northern Italy by one of his valets. It is, in fact, the pink Savagnin vine, more than likely stemming from the Arbois area. Since 1971, the Klevener de Heiligenstein grape planted on a 52 hectare area located on a southern slope at the edge of the village bears the Klevener de Heiligenstein local label.
Everywhere in Alsace many old vines have disappeared to the benefit of nowadays classical Pinot, Riesling and other vines, everywhere but in Heiligenstein where the wine growers keep on cultivating this vine that thrives so well on their clayey and siliceous soil.

Harvesting, wine-making and ageing : Manual harvest, then grape selection and sorting-out, immediate pressing, must clarification and settling, then fermentation of the clear juice. Rigorous control of the fermentation and maturation in oak tuns. Bottling after a few months when wines are clear and ready.

How to serve it : Serve Klevener between 10° and 12° C when young, between 13° and 15° C after a few years for more mature wines.

How to keep it : This wine may be kept 10 years and more in a cool cellar at a constant temperature (10° to 14° C). Store the bottles flat, with the cork in contact with the wine in order to avoid drying-out.

What to drink it with : Its harmony, freshness, smoothness make Klevener a pleasant companion throughout an entire meal. Due to its delicacy, its elegance and discretion together with its solid frame, it is the ideal wine to serve with delicate dishes. It is also perfect with « nouvelle cuisine ».