Frankstein Grand Cru

• Profile: Dry and mineral with ascending, chiselled acidity. Elegant saline sensation with crystalline minerality. Notes of citrus, pear, pineapple, and mentholated freshness characteristic of the granite terroir.
• Food Pairing: River fish, pike quenelles, scallops, poultry vol-au-vents, aged mountain cheeses.
• Serving Temp: 46-50°F (Well chilled)

Léo Dirringer, a fourth-generation vigneron based in Dambach-la-Ville, Alsace, is one of the region's most exciting young natural wine producers. Born in 1992, he took over the family estate Domaine Ruhlmann-Dirringer at the end of 2016, immediately converting all 14 hectares to organic viticulture and launching his own range of natural wines.

Léo studied oenology in Montpellier before moving to Switzerland, where an internship with legendary natural wine pioneer Marie-Thérèse Chappaz convinced him of the importance of grape quality and terroir respect. But the defining moment came when he tasted Jean-François Ganevat's Chalasses Marnes Bleues 2011—an 'earth-shaking' experience that showed him the purity possible in sulfur-free vinification. That single bottle changed everything, pointing the way to his own winemaking philosophy.

Farming & Cellar: The estate spans 14 hectares on sand and gravel over dense granite, including a parcel in Grand Cru Frankstein. Certified organic (AB), Léo shows utmost respect for his grapes with slow, gentle presses. All wines are wild-fermented, unfiltered, and sulfur-free, aged in traditional Alsatian foudres. In his words, he 'tries to make fresh, digestible and fluid wines'—a philosophy that challenges Alsace's stereotype for heavy, sweet wines.