4/3/2010 Hugel "Gentil" 2007

04/03/2010 Uncorking, whoa it's a screw cap!!!

First wine of the weekly wine trials, tasting and pairing those wines under $15.00 retail

Alsatian "Gentile" Hugels 2007-

First off this wine was a keeper at $13.99/bottle retail. I really don't think you can beat this kind of quality and flavor. I did not do my research for this wine and mistakenly took it as a Pinot Gris or equally dry white, WRONG dead WRONG! This wine is a blend Gewurztraminer, Pinot Gris, Riesling, Muscat and Sylvaner grapes and like I said it was quite the surprise

At first impression I notice a combination of vanilla and (to my senses) orange blossom and pear on the nose. Enticed to taste I notice hints of minerality lending acidity likely from the Pinot gris, as there is also this wonderful tart green apple flavor. It's a refreshing green apple and pear nicely balanced by the earlier mentioned slight minerality and a smooth citrus finish. I think of star fruit, melon, pineapple, smooth creamy cheeses like young goat cheeses, my fav Bucherondin de Chèvre would be stellar here.

Outside of cheese I think you could certainly enjoy with starters, a friend of mine thought a grilled pear salad with baby spinach, toasted walnuts and goat cheese would be perfect. I couldn't agree more, so I'll be picking another up just to play around with starters. The "Gentil" certainly has enough body for both poultry or fishes, I think it would do nicely with a touch of thai spice, that subtle sweet and heat would easily pair with this maybe satay or chili glazed chicken skewers. I will be mixing up a few sauces soon to test and see what this wine can hold up to and compliment best. I gravitate to non oily fishes here but I'm still playing with a few ideas.

It did not go overly well with the "traditional" Caramelized onion tart (with Camembert vs. Gruyere) I made. A drier wine would have likely been the better choice but still it did not offend. This wine is perfectly drinkable on it's own but needs the chill, ideal 46-50f because of it's slightly fuller body.

Recipe below-