Hugel - Twitter Taste Live

Six Hugel wines were sampled tonight by members of the global wine twitterati. We being the prudes we are, only tasted two. The Hugel Gentil 2006, and the Hugel Pinot Blanc 2005. The wine maker, Etienne Hugel was on hand during the tasting under the @binendswine twitter handle. The party started out rather tame but got going by about wine #3 or so. Everyone seemed to enjoy the lively dialog and having the opportunity to ask Etienne questions about the wines. I'm partial to the following quote from Etienne Hugel for obvious reasons:

smells like grapes to me and that's the first merit of Alsace wines

The Hugel Gentil is a blend of four grapes and to me, exhibited a lot of Pinot Gris on the nose. Taster A got a little more out of the nose than I did noting fig, melon, grapefruit, mineral, hazelnut, and honey. The palate starts off with a blast of grapefruit and mineral and then dissipates to a very rich mouth feel--somewhat like toffee or butter (although I hesitate to say "butter" because it's not that oak-induced butter that one normally thinks of). There is a spiciness there as well.

I was partial to the Pinot Blanc which had nice aromas of pear, warm tropical essence and citrus, and bright flavors of citrus and mineral. Taster A also picked up some honeysuckle again which I can see too. It is just a nice round and layered thing.

We had lots of fun on this Twitter Taster Live! I could definitely get used to virtual tastings like this where I can enjoy tasting/discussing wines from the comfort of my own home. If it sounds appealing to you too, check out Bin Ends Wine for details on the next Twitter Taste Live in September.