Crémant and Crêpes? Oui! Three Crémant d’Alsace Paired with Crab Crêpes and Crêpes Suzette for a summery feast? Oui, oui, oui!  Unfamiliar with Crémant? It’s simply sparkling wine made in France from other regions than Champagne that typically has slightly lower pressure, 4.5 bars. The name came about because champagne that had less than 6 bars of pressure was called Crémant, and the fine folks in Champagne said you can’t call you sparkling wine Champagne, but you can call it Crémant. 

Crémant comes from eight regions in France, including Alsace, and they don’t see themselves as competing with the Champagne region.Crémant d’Alsace represents 27% of production: 34 millions bottles with have of the Crémant in France from Alsace, and is the #1 bubbly after champagne.

Crémant d’Alsace comes from Alsace located in the north east region of France where they enjoy a special climate with dry pleasant springs. Summers can be very warm, and winter is very cold — with below freezing temperatures. The warm days and cold nights in the fall preserve freshness and fruitniess. With these conditions, the grapes have adapted to the terroir.

Alsace is also well known for cute villages with historical architecture, and some wineries started the 14 and 15th centuries with up to fifteen generations in the same vineyards and wineries. The new generation seeks to preserve the family and continues the business

“families are the soul of Alsace”

Visitors to Alsace also enjoy a strong sense of hospitality with tastings in homes. These traditions developed a  strong regional identity with their own language and dialect that’s more German than French of which they are very proud and want to keep.

To maintain their way of life for so many generations, they’ve learned to be respectful of the environment.  It’s not just marketing to say this: they started organic and biodynamic in the south part of Alsace in the 60s, and today 35% is organic or biodynamic or in conversion. There are more companies in Alsace that are organic than in Germany. 

In the wines, you’ll fine six grapes: pinot blanc: soft, delicate;, auxurois round and depth; riesling fruit and freshness; pinot gris rich dn round; chardonnay lightness, elegance, brioche . allowed in AOC Cremant but not AOC Alsace; Pinot Noir to blanc de noir and rose mostly non-vintage; blend or single; some brut nature

Watch the replay of the Webinar:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCstsg_uKeI

Picked first because cremant can’t have more than 13% alcohol,  grapes are manually harvest, all whole grapes into press, then using the traditional method with secondary fermentation in the bottle with a minimum 9 mo on lees, 1 year in bottle.

Cremant loves to pair with seafood including oysters, but also crispy foods like fried chicken and popcorn with truffle salt, and potato chips. Bubbles boost the cream in creamy cheeses.

Menu

• Raspberries on Spring Greens with Cypress Grove Purple Haze and Spiced Pecans with orange vineagrete 
• Crab Crêpes
• Crêpes Suzette 

Sue stated, “Crepes are not the easiest meal to prepare, the saving grace is that the crepes can be made ahead of time. The crab crepe recipe used quite a bit of Sherry so it is not for the feint of heart, and is full of flavor. Just like pancakes, the first few crepes you make will not be your best, but they get easier the more you practice.” PS You can always buy pre-made crepes! 

 

Crémant d’Alsace

• 2017 Domaine Dirler-Cadé Brut Nature Crémant d’Alsace
• Jean-Baptiste Adam Brut Rose Crémant d’Alsace
• Joseph Cattin Crémant d’Alsace Brut 

2017 Domaine Dirler-Cadé Brut Nature Crémant d’Alsace

ABV 12.5
SRP $27
Sample for my review
Importer:T. Edward Wine & Spirits
Grapes: 60% Pinot Gris, 30% Auxerrois, 10% Riesling

Over 150 years ago, in 1871, Jean Dirler founded Domaine Dirler;  today his descendent, fifth-generation winemaker Jean Dirler and his wife, Ludivine farms these vineyards biodynamically. In 2000, Domaine Dirler joined Ludivine’s familial vineyards to form Domaine Dirler-Cadé, now with 18 biodynamic hectares. 

Such a great wine for the price! We liked it a lot; we would recommend this wine to our local wine shop, we would search this wine out, we would buy this wine. 

Color: Pale straw, delicate persistant bubbles 

Aroma: Green apple, brioche, almond, clean, slate, wet stone.

Palate: Creamy texture, tart fruit, green apple, lemon, fennel, nice complexity mid palate, tastes alive, you taste the soil, the earth, an indescribable something.

Pairing: The wine brings out all the sweetness of the meal, the crab is sweeter and the salad is sweeter. It cuts through this very rich meal. The wine becomes even more bone dry than when sipping on it without food. I enjoyed the with with the salad It harmonizes with the greens, matches and enhances the tartness of the raspberries. I felt this would be a great pair with Ahi tuna salad. The wine was perfect with the richness of the orange butter on our Crepes Suzette, Sue thought that the dessert might fight with the wine, but it was absolutely perfect. The wine loved the rich flavor of the orange butter, the hint of the mint garnish also adds to the pleasurable experience. 

Joseph Cattin Crémant d’Alsace Brut

Alcohol: 12%
Soils: Clay, Limestone
Grapes: Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Riesling, Chardonnay
SRP:$19
Importer: T. Edward Wines

The Cattin family traces their arrival from Switzerland to Alsace to the year 1720 when they settled in the village of Voegtlinshoffen where they began a viticultural legacy that continues today. Winery namesake Joseph Cattin pioneered work in grafting credited for saving regional vineyards from phylloxera. Today, the 160 acres of vines planted to all traditional Alsace varietals is run by Jacques and Jean-Marie Cattin who also owns and operates two separate wineries, one dedicated to producing Crémant.

Color:  Pale lemon, soft delicate gentle bubbles, 

Aroma: Green apple, brioche, fennel pollen, fresh, meadow flowers, fresh and bright, don’t be offended by the funky nose straight out of the bottle, it does blow off fairly quickly 

Palate: Meyer lemon, nice roundness, golden delicious apple, pear, orange pith, orange rind, orange oil on the  finish, the finish is unexpected and pleasant, a very nice surprise, 

Pairing: Great with the richness of the crab crepe, the dish brings out lovely citrus in the wine, the wine cuts through the richness of the food nicely, works well with the salad loving the flavor profiles of the orange vinegarette and goat cheese topping. I felt the bitterness of the greens fought a bit with the wine, but Sue found them to be very nice together. Very nice with the crepes Suzette, the orange butter was a perfect compliment to the orange profiles in the wine. This mildly sweet dessert is so fantastic with this wine. 

Jean-Baptiste Adam Brut Rose Crémant d’Alsace

ABV: 12%
RS:7 g/l
Acidity:3.8 g/l
Soil: Granite
Grapes:100% Pinot Noir
SRP:$26
Importer:The Sorting Table
Sample for my review

A 14th generation winemaker, Jean-Baptiste took over the 42 acre family estate from father Jean-Marie after working at the winery starting 1982 after he finished his wine studies. Embracing biodynamic agriculture, in 2003, he transformed the estate as well as 10 acres to biodynamics.  Daughter Laurae completed her B.S. in Viticulture and Oenology and a Master’s in Wine Management and Marketing, and joined her father Jean-Baptiste in making a range of wines including “Les Natures,” which they design to express the pureness of the varieties.

Color: Salmon delicate bubbles

Aroma: There is a bit of funk up front, sulphuric, dirty sock, the funk blows off nicely leaving a hint of strawberry and raspberry, the fruit is nicely subtle, 

Palate: Seafood bubbles, strawberry, orchard fruit mid palate, generic white stone fruit, apple, pear, Sue found a bit of herbasiousness, mint and sage, 

Pairing: Absolutely perfect with the meal, our favorite wine to complete the meal of the three, it loves the rich crab crepe, the Swiss cheese topping is a perfect compliment to the wine. What a great brunch meal and wine. The salad is also a perfect compliment to the wine. The raspberries, lavender goat cheese and the spiced nuts completely elevate the wine as much as the wine elevates the meal. 

Here’s more Crémant d’Alsace for you from the French Winophiles!

• Cremant Wine Battered Perch; Michigan and French Classics Collide on A Day in the Somm’s Table/SommsTable.comLife on the Farm
• A Thai Green Curry Lesson + Willm Crémant d’Alsace Brut Rosé on Culinary Adventures
• Crémant d’Alsace: An Elegant Sparkling Wine from France on Grape Experiences
• Crémant d’Alsace – Exploring the Nuances of France’s 2nd Favorite Sparkling Wine #Winophiles on Crushed Grape Chronicles
• Crémant d’Alsace: A Candidate for Your House Bubbly on Food Wine Click!
• Crémant d’Alsace Paired with Summer Fish Menus on Always Ravenous
• Crab Crêpes Compliment Crémant d’Alsace for Summer #Winophiles on Wine Predator
• Cheese Hour at the Culinary Cabin with Pierre Sparr Crémant d’Alsace Brut Reserve on Somm’s Table
• Porch Sipper of the Year: Crémant d’Alsace on Keep the Peas
• Crispy Fishwich + an Organic Cremant d’Alsace from Charles Bauer on Wineivore
• Try This Traditional French Sparkler For Modern Drinkers on l’occasion