Alsace wine producer: Jean Becker, Zellenberg

Historically, Jean Becker was a negociant house with a minor fraction of wines from own land. Since the late 1980's, the direction has been to develop a range of vins de terroir from Lieux-dits in and around Zellenberg. An increasing share, now 10 ha, of the wines are organically grown under the J-P. & F. Becker label, named after present owners Jean-Philippe och François. In total, the firm sells wine from an impressing 32 ha.

The wines are crisp and dry, with nice body and revealing the characterstics of the terroirs.

François manages the vineyards while Martine, the sister, manages the sales on God knows how many fluent languages.

Despite that Becker markets 5 Grand Crus, I am very fond of the three Lieux-dits, all situated in Zellenberg. Two of these, Kronenbourg och Lerchenberg, are located on the east-facing slopes just west of the road D1. They can be seen as extentions of Schoenenbourg. The third Lieu-dit, Hagenschlauf, is located north-east of the village close to the cemetary where the hail-storms tend to be severe.

A real treat of the Becker house is the pure Muscat Ottonel from the Grand Cru Froehn. This soil has a unique geology, with a bedrock with little limestone but pockets of iron, formed under chemically reducing conditions. The Froehn Muscat is dense, yet elegant, character with restrained varietal character.

The price of the Becker range is very attractive in relation to the quality. The tasting room offers a large selection of local products, as well as books and glasses that can be hard to track down elsewhere.

Latest visit: 2005

Facts

Jean Philippe, Jean François and Martine Becker 2 & 4, route d´Ostheim +33 (0)389 47 90 16
+33 (0)389 47 99 57 (fax)
vinsbecker@aol.com
Riesling Génerique €5.90
Riesling Lerchenberg €8.65
Riesling Grand Cru Froehn €11.50
Classic, dry wines with good body. Welcoming and professional. Very good English. Grands Crus: Froehn, Schoenenbourg, Sonnenglanz, Praelatenberg, Schlossberg
Lieux-dits: Hagenschlauf, Kronenbourg, Lerchenberg, Rimelsberg

Selected representative wines 2005

2002 Riesling Lerchenberg Classy nose with citrus and petrol, the taste has good punch and structure. 2000 Riesling Kronenbourg Petrolly nose with complexity. Very good lingering taste with almost tannic finish. Super wine that will match many really good meals. 2001 Riesling Grand Cru Schoenenbourg Rich, developed and expressive nose. Powerful taste with zesty acidy. Succulent, structured and long taste with an extra dimension true to the terroir. 2001 Gewurztraminer Grand Cru Froehn Wonderful spicy nose. Excellent, pure taste with complex, pleasent and restrained varietal character.