Hurst’s impressive Pinot Noir comes from 35-50 year old vines on the warm slopes close to the the Grand Cru of Brand and would give many a Burgundy a run for their money!

Domaine Hurst dates from 1926 but the family’s vinous roots go back to the 17^th century, now run by thirteenth generation Armand Hurst and his wife Nicole. With a financial investment in 2016 from Marc Rinaldi, Colmar industrialist, serial entrepreneur and long-time benefactor of the Alsace vignoble, the estate has been transformed. Marc brought in a new team led by Samuel Tottoli, a sommelier turned winemaker who had previously spent more than a dozen years reinvigorating the famous Alsace house of Kuentz-Bas. The transformation here has been swift and dramatic with notable gains in concentration, texture and vitality, all of them shaped by the peculiar geology of their large holding in the Grand Cru of Brand’s granitic soils. A new biodynamic regime saw the entirety of the domaine certified by Demeter in 2019.

Hurst’s Pinot Noir Vieilles Vignes is seriously good with powerful fruit and balanced structure from 35-50 year old vines on the warm slopes close to the t he Grand Cru of Brand, its warm situation give excellent ripeness to the Pinot Noir. The grapes are picked at optimum ripeness and whole bunch fermented with natural yeasts in old oak foudres for 6 weeks.

In the glass a deep colour and savoury smoky nose of red fruits and followed by a complex spicy palate of raspberries cherries and plums with soft perky tannins. Drinking well now but could keep a bit too.

Style: elegant, fresh, fruity

Maturity: drinking well now but could age for a year or two