Today in the afternoon I visited Zind Humbrecht outside of Turckheim. I know it sounds ridiculous, but again I drove in circles endlessly trying to find this place. The roads are extremely confusing and my vague little maps don’t help. There are two roads called D11,  parallel to each other and also starting and leading to different locations. There was no obvious sign outside of Zind, and well, it’s just not easy getting our bearings around here.

80% of their wines are exported and they are obviously in high regard.  While they were extremely welcoming, friendly and accommodating, the experience was altogether the opposite of my morning at Weinbach. The decor was glass and chrome, modern art on the walls. The two receptionists juggle visitors and other professionals all day long. They obviously had a program in place for visiting professionals.

Jolene from South Africa, and Frederique, a true Alsatian girl, were the two front staff members who greeted my arrival They were young and cheerful, and extremely knowledgeable not only about Zind but about exporting and other global wine issues of the day. Zind is clearly a company focused on the world market and exporting. Yet, they are still closely connected to their terroir, but the experience of my visit felt more generic and less personal in comparison to the morning. Goes to show how the subjective and qualitative impressions can shape your experience of an event.

Zind closely follows bio-dynamic viniculture practices as a guiding philosophy, and a set of practices in sustaining their vines, which can be up to 80 or 90 years old. Excellent wines, though I left without feeling the need to take home a bottle.