Grape Variety: Auxerrois Blanc

Colour: White

Auxerrois Blanc or Auxerrois Blanc de Laquenexy is a white wine grape that is important in Alsace, and is also grown in Germany and Luxembourg. It is a full sibling of Chardonnay that is often blended with the similar Pinot Blanc.

Auxerrois Blanc is thought to have originated in Lorraine, rather than near Auxerre in the Yonne. Recent DNA fingerprinting suggests that it is a cross between Gouais blanc and Pinot, the same ancestry as Chardonnay. The name Auxerrois Blanc has actually been used as a synonym for Chardonnay in the Moselle region in France, which explains why there is also a longer name (Auxerrois Blanc de Laquenexy) for the grape variety.

It favours limestone soils, and ripens a little earlier than Pinot blanc. It has small compact bunches.

According to Tom Stevenson any Alsace wine that is” labelled, specifically, Pinot Auxerrois or Auxerrois should be 100% Auxerrois.” This is a fatter, spicier grape than the Pinot Blanc, and has traditionally been blended with the latter to produce a better balanced Pinot wine, with a distinct inclination for producers south of Colmar to use more Pinot Blanc in the blend, while those further north use more Auxerrois. Get up as far as Cléebourg and the Auxerrois in its pure form can display an astonishing amount of finesse for what is often thought of as a fat and blowzy variety.

Albert Mann’s Pinot Auxerrois displays pear, green apple and lime citrus on both nose and palate. The nose yields acacia and the palate also shows a bitter minerality with something of a powdery feel. The finish is not intense but is satisfyingly long and mouthfilling with a grainy, grippy edge and a good slicing freshness.