2022 Domaine Weinbach Gewurztraminer Les Treilles du Loup Alsace 750 ml

By any measure, Domaine Weinbach is Alsatian royalty. They’re not just one of the top estates in the region, but in all of France. Their Les Treilles du Loup shows off the heights Gewürztraminer can achieve. The grape takes an exceptional amount of skill to vinify to its peak, and Weinbach has the benefit of centuries of handed-down perfectionism and knowledge. 

The 2022 is powerful and expressive, yet refined and elegant. That’s a rare combination and a true conundrum to have so many seemingly mutually exclusive attributes…yet they all coexist in one wine. It’s just captivating.

Weinbach has long been one of the most collectible, blue-chip producers in Alsace, and the key to their success has been their outstanding vineyard holdings. The 40-50–year old Gewürztraminer vines in the lieu-dit of Wolfreben provide the impeccable raw materials for this 2022 Les Treilles du Loup (“The Wolf’s Vines”). 

Wolfreben sits in the beloved Kaysersberg Valley, which is nestled between Weinbach’s Clos des Capucins—a site planted since at least 890, home to some of the most coveted wines in the domaine’s lineup—and their home village of Kaysersberg itself. With sandy silt soils interspersed with gravel, the vineyard drains well, and Wolfreben’s climate and exposition promote ripening earlier in the season without fear of disease.

In the warm 2022 vintage, those attributes produced a bottle with power and intensity, highlighting Gewürz’s classic rose and lychee aromas with a palate that screams spice, minerality, and beautifully decadent fruit—all highlighted with a soft yet dry-tasting finish. It’ll be an outstanding pairing with less-spicy Thai and Indian flavors, or enjoy it over the course of a few hours with some well-selected cheeses.