In Colmar with two foodies from San Francisco, I followed Rick Steve advice and visited the hidden gem of Domaine Burn in Gueberschwihr, about 20 minutes south by bus. The village itself is quite interesting, far from the highways at the foot of hills covered with grapes. Located on the 'Route des Vins d'Alsace', the village is apparently well known for its Renaissance houses and the amazing romanesque/neo-romanesque church tower on the Grand Place. Domaine Burn is one block away in the Rue Basse, and can easily be found because of the distinctive 'Dauphin' iron shop sign outside the main gate; I learned later that this is a copy, and that the original is featured in the Alsatian folk art wing of the UnterLinden Museum in Colmar. The owners -Simone and Francis- offered samples of their wines, including the famous 'Grand Cru Goldert' that comes from a small plot of land above the village in a very steep parcel at the edge of the forest. If you are lucky and if he has time, Francis will hike up the hill to the ‘Clos Goldert”, pickup a handful of dirt and let you breathe in the particular smell of this mythical land. Francis will patiently explained the Clos unique characteristics including a very dry (quoting his father ‘the vine has to go deep and suffer to produce good wine’) surface limestone rich in fossils that filter the water to perfection and the surrounding stone walls that reflects the morning sun. The owners are clearly passionate about their wines, and the resulting Muscat, Gewurztraminer, Riesling and Vendanges Tardives are outstanding and well worth a trip. The winery is one of the oldest in Europe, having been in business continuously for 350 years; while in the cellar, we had the pleasure to meet another member of the family, Bernadette who wrote one of the best books about Alsace and its wines. Surprisingly, prices are vey low for this level of quality, and I will have to visit their importer in Castro Valley, CA when I am back.
Again, Thanks Rick Steve for pointing us to this hidden gem of a winery.
Vince
Berkeley, CA
Posted by
Twin Cities of MN
5581 posts
Wow, Vince, way to go. Now I have to make a return trip to Alsace. ;)
Posted by
Portland, Maine
2916 posts
I've made several trips to Alsace and visited some outstanding wineries, but I'm pretty sure I didn't make it to this one. But it certainly sounds like an outstanding place, and maybe I'll be back there. I see from their web site that they, like many wineries in France, will ship anywhere in France, with arrival in 2-3 days.
Posted by
Twin Cities of MN
5581 posts
Just looked at a map. The winery is just a bit south of Eguisheim. We absolutely loved Eguisheim if folks are looking for a quaint little town to sleep in when visiting this winery.