Crémant D’Alsace Jean-Claude BUECHER – ‘From Ground to Bubble’

For many ‘bubbles’ from France is all about Champagne, but if you share this theme of thinking then you are certainly missing out on some of the very best traditional French sparkling wine making skills.

If you think about it, France with its 643,801 km² of size, Champagne only takes up a mere 0.05% of it all with approximately 350 km². So outside the ‘king of wines’ vine filled fields there are countless more km² growing fine sparkling wines to include the Crémant selection and one stand out location of Alsace.

“AOC Crémant d’Alsace is the jewel in the crown of the sparkling wines produced in Alsace. Fresh and elegant, Crémant d’Alsace is developed by secondary fermentation, and predominately made from Pinot Blanc, but also from Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Riesling or Chardonnay. These varietals are in general picked at the very beginning of the harvest, an auspicious moment when the grapes offer the best balance and harmony for vinification.” Quote taken from website Vins D’Alsace.

“Unfortunately I can not speak from first hand experience as I am yet to visit Alsace, but from the sparkling wines of this region that I have tasted there is sure a re-occurring sign of excellence that deserves a lot more exposure to the UK market that as many of us know has a real thirst for fizz.” Christopher Walkey – Founder of Glass of Bubbly.

Each wine region holds hidden treasures and for me it is all about discovering new wineries and wines so in this feature I wish to look at Jean-Claude BUECHER. A winery that is located in the Haut-Rhin department in the Grand Est region of France and in the town of Wettolsheim located close to the border with Germany.  A selection of eight Crémants await you if you decide to visit this family run since 1979 winery.

“The Buecher wine estate was born in 1979 to Jean-Claude and Sylviane Buecher. Before long, specializing in the making of Crémant d’Alsace became the next obvious step. After a time-consuming construction of the cellar from 1980 to 1986, Jean-Claude and Sylviane procured a pneumatic press and subsequently equipped stainless steel vats. Their project finally comes to fruition – Jean-Claude and Sylviane are autonomous! They now have the freedom to create and assemble their different terroirs as they deem fit. Their son Franck decides to board the family sparkler train in 2005. With experience passed on to him by his parents, the young alchemist takes it to another level by extending the ageing time of different vintages.“