The 2019 Bollenberg Pinot Noir is bold, super concentrated, and unapologetically serious. Aromas of ripe red and black cherry burst from the glass, layered with subtle caramel, spice and a touch of toast. On the palate it’s juicy and energetic, with dense yet beautifully fine tannins wrapped around vibrant acidity. It's bone-dry, powerful, and yet still youthful, i.e. it has all the stuffing to age gracefully.

Let’s head to Orschwihr, just south of Colmar, where Domaine Valentin Zusslin has been quietly doing exceptional things since 1691, for thirteen generations! This is living, breathing Alsace history, whilst wildly relevant. Today the reins are held by siblings Jean-Paul and Marie Zusslin, a dream duo who took over in 2000 and pushed the estate firmly into cult territory. Certified organic since 1997 and biodynamic since 2000 (before it was cool), the Zusslins farm with horses, plant trees, keep bees, and basically treat their vineyards like a self-sustaining ecosystem rather than a monoculture. The vibe? Deep respect for nature, zero shortcuts, maximum expression. Their vines stretch across some of Alsace’s most exciting sites - Bollenberg, Clos Liebenberg and the Pfingstberg Grand Cru - with old vines rooted in hard Jurassic limestone. The star of this cuvée is the legendary Bollenberg hillside: a sun-soaked, limestone-rich, Natura 2000–protected site with a rare Mediterranean microclimate (yes, in Alsace). Red clay streaked with iron oxide, wild orchids, lizards, birds - it’s alive. And that life translates straight into the glass. Their Pinot Noir vines on Bollenberg date back to the 1960s and ’70s, and the results are turning heads far beyond Alsace. These wines now sit confidently alongside top Côte de Beaune villages, delivering structure, depth, and unmistakable terroir character. This is not “light Alsace Pinot” - this is Pinot with shoulders.