Heaven is Imported from Alsace Category

In his book 'Oldman's Guide to Outsmarting Wine,' Mark Oldman gives the delicious tidbit that Alsacian wines are the latest thing amongst people in the know about wine. And he points out that when you talk about them, you should put a strong stress on the second syllable, as in 'Al SAY shun' wine. I love tips like that. It makes me feel like I've been let in on a secret handshake. Alsace is in the Northeast corner of France, near Germany. I remember learning in high school French class, that it is an area that has been passed back and forth between France and Germany for the past several centuries. Though it now belongs to France (since 1919) it has a very strong German influence in it's food, culture, and now I know it's wine. Alsace produces white wines such as Gewurtztraminer and Riesling. I scored a Gewurtz, Michel Leon at Trader Joe's for 10 bucks. It came in a long, tapered-neck bottle, like the German wines do. When I first opened it, I smelled a light floral scent, and feared that it might be too sweet for my tastes. It isn't. The taste is granny smith apples with butter and a lemon twist. There's a spicy tang that gives it a tonic quality. The flavors go great with Asian like I made tonight, salmon roasted with a soy, ginger, onion and crushed red pepper sauce. Though there was nothing restrained about the flavor of this wine, neither was it overpowering. It's crisp and tart with a spicy zing. Now, I can say I love Al SAY tion wines and not just for effect... I really mean it.