Again yesterday, I was feeling young 2022 is a 50cl bottle of natural wine crafted by Anders Frederik Steen, in the Ardeche region in France. This oxidative white wine in a 50cl bottle is made with a blend of Pinot Blanc and Gewürztraminer grapes, sourced from the Bannworth estate in Alsace. Anne and Anders actually have a small cellar in Alsace, as well as Ardeche to make these wines which are very dear to them and a style they are most praised for.
We have not yet tried any of the new Steen releases but can say these 50cl Oxidative wines are the gems of his range, and we are very excited to try them!
Anders Frederik Steen states that "This wine reminds us in some way more of a perfume than a wine. Deep in flavors, in the aftertaste we find the rich and very aromatic Gewürztraminer that at the time of harvest had a beautiful noble rot. But the very first impression is dominated by the Pinot Blanc, with its light aromas of white roses, Jasmin flower, white unripe peaches and its saltiness.
These flavours fill the glass, and not until later the rich and deeper, riper, flavors from the Gewürztraminer is showing up. We made a direct press of the grapes same day as we harvested them to be able to extract as much of these flavours as possible, first the Pinot Blanc and some days later the Gewürztraminer.
After a few days of oxidation, the juice went into fiberglass tank to ferment over winter. This first fermentation has taken place outside. After a soutirage in the spring of 2023, the wine went into the cellar where it finished its fermentation and stayed another two years in old barrels without topping up. This gave the wine the time to take on a little oxidation, not a lot, just a little hint. And most important, not enough to disturb the fragile expression of the Pinot Blanc. The balance is important in wine, but equally important is it to give all the small discrete aromas a voice."
