Home > Producer Profiles > Alsace Profiles > Hugel
Hugel
Hugel was established in 1639 by Hans Ulrich Hugelin, although the family have been present in Alsace for perhaps two centuries before that. Hans Ulrich became a prominent figure in Riquewihr, where he settled, and was soon head of the influential Corporation des Vignerons. The business was quickly established; by 1672 Hans Ulrich's son built a fine house on the rue des Cordiers, which the family still used until Frédéric-Emile Hugel vacated it in 1902, moving the business to the heart of Riquewihr. Above the door was carved the family crest, which is the basis for the Hugel bottle logo; it features three hills (Hugel means 'hill' in a local dialect) and the letters HUH for Hans Ulrich.
Hans
Ulrich and his son were the first and second generations, but today we should
concern ourselves with the twelfth and thirteenth. The former is Jean Hugel, and
although the Hugel family has contributed much to Alsace and its wines Jean
surely deserves a specific mention. One of Jean Hugel's greatest contributions
was fostering the vendange tardive style. Late harvest wines have been
produced at Hugel for over a century, as evidenced by the presence of ancient
vintages in the family cellars. But Jean pressed for legal requirements to be
applied to this style of wine, to ensure quality was maintained, with the use of
Chaptalisation a problem of particular concern, among others. After over a
decade of work, Jean submitted The Hugel Law to the necessary authorities, of
which there were many; the INAO, CRINAO, the French Ministry of Agriculture and
the appropriate officials in Brussels. The law was passed without amendment to
Jean's text, and the result was a massive upsurge in the numbers of vignerons
producing these wines. And although some now excel, none seem to dominate in
the way that Hugel does, producing superlative vendange tardive Riesling,
Gewurztraminer and Pinot Gris, as well as superior selection de grains nobles.
Notably, wines eligible for these designations must pass a blind taste test at
least fifteen months after harvest; wines deemed unsuitable (and there are many)
do not win the right to declare this classification on the label.
Today
Jean has passed the mantle onto Etienne, Marc and other members of the
thirteenth generation. They are difficult shoes to fill, but having met Etienne
recently at a Hugel tasting dinner, I think he is doing just fine. Marc Hugel is
now winemaker, and here it seems quality at the upper end has been maintained,
and if anything improved at the lower end. The new generation are
forward-looking, and Etienne told me they have even moved to bottle a few
experimental wines under screw-cap, although they have no firm plans to ditch
cork at present. They will maintain the well
delineated range at Hugel; there has always been a clear and obvious step up in quality as you move up the
ranks. The entry level wines are generally
the generic 'Hugel' bottlings; these are négoce wines, made using
fruit from more than 300 contracted growers who tend over 100 ha of vineyard. If there was a weakness in the Hugel
portfolio it was here, but on recent tasting it was clear there has been a great improvement; these were classic
examples of the varieties in question. Then comes the Tradition range,
which is often a blend of purchased fruit and some estate-grown fruit. The
pinnacle of the dry wines is the Jubilee range, always made from the
Hugel's own vineyards. These include Hugel's two Grand Cru sites; Sporen (a decent 8
hectares) and Schoenenbourg (3.8 hectares). You will not find the Grand Cru
designation on the labels, however, as Jean Hugel found too much fault with the
system. He, like some other Alsace vignerons, felt that the classified vineyards
had boundaries too extensive, and included a variety of soil types, which
significantly devalued the designation.
Between the dry wines and the sweet are the 'Hommage a Jean Hugel' range; wines with VT levels of ripeness but vinified dry, produced only in great years. But, as discussed above, it is with the Vendange Tardive and Selection de Grains Nobles. that we see true greatness at Hugel. Here they lead - jointly, perhaps - the field. (13/10/04)
Contact details:
Address: 3 rue de la Première Armée, 68640 Riquewihr
Telephone: +33 (0) 3 89 47 92 15
Fax: +33 (0) 3 89 49 00 10
Internet: www.hugel.com
Hugel - Tasting Notes
Click
to locate stockists.
Hugel Les Fleurs d'Alsace 2003: Tasted the day after the bottle below. The blend varies with the vintage but
this is 20% Pinot Gris, 20% Riesling and 15% Gewurztraminer, the remainder being
Pinot Blanc and Sylvaner. Floral, uncomplicated nose. Full, fresh and fruity on
the palate, with a little spice. I like Edelzwicker blends, and this is fairly
good. For current drinking. 15/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Les Fleurs d'Alsace 2003: An Edelzwicker blend. Tropical fruit
notes from the Pinot Gris. Good, fresh acidity on the palate. Exotic fruit
notes. A good foil for the canapés. From a Hugel
tasting dinner. 15/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Pinot Blanc 2003: A blend of 50% Auxerrois and 50% Pinot Blanc.
A pear fruit nose. Full, dry palate. Slightly stony and peppery palate. Good
freshness. 15/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Riesling 'Hugel' 2003: A classic Riesling nose. Plenty of good,
fresh fruit on the palate. Dry and very classic. Impressive for a négoce wine.
15.5/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Gewurztraminer 'Hugel' 2003: Grapes for this négoce wine
sourced from clay-limestone soils south of Colmar. Classic, sweet perhaps
over-perfumed nose. Low acidity with similar aromatics on the palate. A little
richness, lovely mouthfeel with this. Spice and perfume finish. I would prefer
more acidity - a problem with Gewurztraminer. 14/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Riesling 'Hugel' 2001: Very classic Riesling; steely lime aromas
on the nose. Very dry palate with a similar fruit profile. Medium body. Fine in
itself but paled in the shadow of the lime and chilli marmalade; there are few
wines that wouldn't. From a Hugel tasting dinner. 15.5/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Gewurztraminer Tradition 2001: A blend of equal parts purchased
and estate-grown fruit. This has a more reserved nose, although still quite
classic. Rich texture. Still has the full, oily feel we may expect, with good
concentration of flavour, but has better acidity. Spice, lychee and rose petal
note. Very good. 16+/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Gewurztraminer Jubilee 2001: Grand Cru Sporen, 100%. Perfumed
lychee nose, although rather tight. Elegant palate. Super lychee and mineral
character. Rich and balanced. This has fine acidity. Very good indeed. 16.6+/20
(September 2004)
Hugel Riesling Jubilee 2001: This is 100% Schoenenberg. Tight nose.
Full, youthful, concentrated, firm, balanced palate. Very good acidity. Elegance
too. This is very impressive indeed. Etienne rates this vintage the best since
1990. 16.5+/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Pinot Gris Tradition 2000: This is the entry level Pinot Gris -
no generic bottling. A bit reticent on the nose; just a little tropical fruit.
Plenty of spice alongside the tropical fruit salad on the palate. Excellent
acidity. Exotic, minerally. Very good. 16/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Pinot Gris Jubilee 2000: Full, minerally, complex, ripe nose. A
concentrated, expressive palate that caresses the mouth. Full, rich, creamy
even, with spicy tropical fruit. This is lovely; real quality here. 17.5+/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Pinot Noir Jubilee 2000: Etienne's personal project. Good
colour. Peppery black cherry and a note of wood on the nose. Notes of chocolate
on the palate. Overall lean but fresh and flavoury. Nice peppery acidity. Good.
From a Hugel tasting dinner. 15.5/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Gewurztraminer Vendange Tardive 2000: Tasted the day after the
bottle below. A massive, floral, rose
petal nose. Full and creamy, floral and peppery. Oily on the endpalate. Lovely
length. Sufficient acidity although still lower than you might expect. Very
good. More impressive today. 18+/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Gewurztraminer Vendange Tardive 2000: A very heady, perfumed,
rose-petal and lychee nose, very reminiscent of the sweetness of Turkish
Delight. Very typical Gewurztraminer. Fat palate, low in acidity, a feature of
this variety. Very good. From a Hugel tasting dinner. 17/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Riesling Tradition 1999: Full, expressive, powerful nose.
Minerally. Steely and concentrated. Good depth. Very impressive. Usually a
négoce wine, this year the Riesling Tradition was declassified Grand Cru
Schoenenbeg. The quality shows. 16+/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Gewurztraminer 1998: Pleasantly aromatic
on the nose, the palate was also floral, but
unfortunately far too floral for me, with a sweet, soapy, perfumed character. It also lacked body on
the palate, which would have helped balance it out. Tasted at
The Left Bank. 13/20 (May 2000)
Hugel Pinot Gris Jubilee 1998: Very typical Pinot Gris on the nose.
Fresh, exotic, sweetly ripe fruit. Full, concentrated dry palate. Good acidity
showing. Excellent match with spiced ballotine of foie gras. From a
Hugel tasting dinner. 16.5/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Riesling Vendange Tardive 1997: A captivating nose of limes and
toffee. The palate is full, rich, creamy and concentrated, with lime
acidity with toffee just as found on the nose. Little in the way of botrytis.
Wonderful. 18.5+/20
(September 2004)
Hugel Pinot Gris Vendange Tardive 1997: Tropical fruit nose,
but in a pure, restrained mode. Yet it has full, explosive flavour on the
palate, with a toffee and cream edge to it. This wine caresses the palate. A
fabulous, hedonistic, textured effort. 19+/20
(September 2004)
Hugel Gewurztraminer Vendange Tardive 1997: This
example is a fairly pale lemon-gold wine, it has a
seductive nose laden with the aromas of maturing
Gewurztraminer. It is redolent of ripe banana, with less
prominent hints of lychees and unsmoked bacon. There is
just a little spice. The wine has elegance and simply
glides across the palate, with a fine balance provided by
near perfect acidity and a restrained but creamy texture
married with sweet banana and cinnamon flavours. Lovely
weight, with plenty of grip towards the endpalate, with a
touch of astringency that will probably settle will time.
A delightful length. 18/20 (September 2001)
Label
Hugel Pinot Gris Vendange Tardive 1996: Fabulous nose here;
expressive, full of sweet tropical fruit and notes of bacon. Fat, sweet and
balanced palate. Complex nuances of vanilla and white pepper alongside the
fruit. Lovely. From a Hugel tasting dinner. 18/20 (September 2004)
Hugel Jubilee Tokay Pinot Gris 1995: The pale
yellow colour of this wine gives no clue to the richness
that is to follow. There are fairly intense aromas of
soft tropical and stone fruit on the nose, with a honeyed
edge. The palate likewise is soft and rounded, with a
generous layer of canned pineapple, pear and other, more
tropical, fruits. Quite a mouth filling richness with a
luscious texture developing through the midpalate as the
wine warms, all provided by a good level of residual
sugar which doesn't dominate the overall feel of the
wine. There is underlying soft acidity providing the
necessary structure. 17/20 (October 2001) Label
Hugel Gewurztraminer Vendange Tardive 1991: It still has a pale, mid-golden hue, and there are a few
tartrate crystals swimming about in it. It has a gorgeous nose - I had forgotten just
how delicious these little bottles were - being lively, evocative and inviting,
showing a seductive array of aromas including baked pears, crisp pastry and
little notes of bacon. The palate is bright, direct and very well defined. It has a
delicious flesh, rich but well framed with structure, with pepper and bacon in abundance
through the midpalate, and gentle caramel and toffee notes at the finish.
Throughout the palate there is a cleansing note of grapefruit acidity and a tinge of quinine.
I find depth, purity and wonderful expression here. Lovely and complex, this is a
delightful wine and it continues to drink very well despite the passing years.
I am fortunate that I have another three half bottles remaining in the cellar
yet, which on today's evidence should serve me very well in future years. For label images and more see my
Wine of the Week write-up. 18.5/20 (March 2008)
Hugel Gewurztraminer Vendange Tardive 1991: Crystal clear hue.
Delightful nose, very expressive, mineral-laced lychee and pear fruit, with
tropical pineapple nuances. There's even a little bacon fat note at first as
well. Lovely finesse on the palate, which shows a slightly bitter, almond-skin
character which appeals greatly, alongside a warm marrowy texture and good,
slightly grippy structure. Nice acidity and certainly nicely balanced.
Excellent. 18/20 (May 2006)
Hugel Gewurztraminer Vendange Tardive 1991: From two half bottles. The
first has an oily, pale gold appearance. Exotic, rose-petal nose, with sweet and
spicy fruits. Rich, oily palate, but with a fresh, acidic, crisp, balanced feel.
Fresh apple and grapefruit notes alongside more exotic flavours, with a bitter
quinine note in the finish. Lovely. The second shows a sweet and an even purer
expression of Gewurztraminer, cut through with complex bacon and mushroom notes.
A pure, beautifully balanced palate; the finest Gewurztraminer I have had the
pleasure of tasting in a number of years. Scored on the strength of the second
bottle. A
Christmas Wine. 17.5/20 (December 2004)
Hugel Pinot Gris Vendange Tardive 1986: A wine
with a very rich and very deep golden
hue in the glass, with just a few very tiny
tartrate crystals. The nose still
shows the same depth and complexity as on any of my previous tastings of this
wine, which I have been drinking for a few years now. There are aromas of sweet
pastry, drizzled with honey, although the aroma does not suggest great sweetness
per se. This characteristic is accompanied by the scents of dried
tropical fruits and crisply fried bacon, a combination which has to suggest
mature Pinot Gris above all other varieties I think, together notes of highly polished wood, nuts and spice.
There is also a little caramel and toffee richness. Beautifully held together on the palate, showing a
lot of fleshy texture from the fading sweetness, with a little grip apparent
through the midpalate, and plenty of pepper and spice on the finish. Really
quite broad and flavoursome, sitting right across the palate with an elegant
poise, and this continues to show through a very long finish.
I seem to enjoy these little bottles more and more, every time I broach one. For label images and more see my
Wine of the Week write-up. 17.5/20 (April 2008)
Hugel Pinot Gris Vendange Tardive 1986:
I won't add a detailed tasting note for this, just one among many half bottles
of this wine which I bought at auction a few years ago. But it's worth adding
that this rich, flavoursome, once hedonistically sweet and yet now fairly dry
wine made a delicious if somewhat perfumed accompaniment to a large roast
chicken. Very good indeed. 17/20 (March 2006)
Hugel Pinot Gris Vendange Tardive 1986: From two half bottles. An
attractive, honey-gold hue. Gorgeous character on the nose, which suggests
sweetness, with drying tropical fruit and notes of spice, honey, lemon,
mushroom, fennel and a pungent, meaty, smoky mineral character. Such complexity!
As with previous bottles, drier on the palate than you might expect. but
certainly rich and full bodied, with an appealing presence in the mouth and some
intense flavour peppered with notes of hawthorn and fennel. Needs some contact
with air to show its full potential, exhibiting more and more complexity in the
glass. Very good indeed. I don't think these (purchased at auction at a very
good price) will get any better, but they should hold for a good while yet.
Gradually to be drunk up. 17/20 (November 2005)
Hugel Pinot Gris Vendange Tardive 1986: From two half bottles. The first
has a pale, honey-gold colour. Mature, ripe, organic, honey-roast meat notes at
first, with pungent, stony-cheesy aromas. Great complexity here. Later shows
more typical PG tropical fruit. Intense palate, but a little drier than
expected. Good body and moderate weight, just a little fatness. Drink now. The
second shows a much more typical PG nose, with spice and bacon-edged tropical
fruit, although with some coffee, toffee and fennel notes – quite different.
Showing a little more sweetness on the palate, with melon and green apple notes
alongside a lovely oily character. Great acidity here. Less advanced, with
preferable weight and depth. I still suggest drinking now though. A Christmas Wine. 16.5/20 (December 2004)
Home - Site Index - Site updated July 04, 2009 - © The Winedoctor 2000 - 2009 - Wine Scores - RSS
