Domaine Francois Schmitt

It was at the beginning of the 1970's that François SCHMITT, a descendant of generations of wine makers, took over the family farm, which at the time covered 3 hectares of vineyard and was located in the centre of the village.

In his eagerness to ensure the long-term future of the enterprise, François SCHMITT proceeded with the acquisition of several plots of land, particularly on the Coteaux du Bollenberg and Grand Cru Pfingstberg, terroirs that now represent around 80% of the domaine's surface area.

In 1984, François SCHMITT launched the construction of new buildings on the edge of the village, which provided him with a functional means of storing the grapes, making the wine and bottling the harvest. In addition, the size of the fermenting rooms was increased on two occasions: the first one in 1995, and the second in 2004.

In 1998, his son Frédéric joined the domain, after acquiring degrees in wine making and oenology in Rouffach (Alsace) and Beaune (Bourgogne). Various training courses allowed him to perfect his education, particularly at Château Guiraud (Sauternes) and Domaine Pierre Bebin (Loire Valley). He has a passion for great wines that spurs him in his search for the highest quality.
The domain now covers 13 hectares

The hillsides of Bollenberg and Pfingstberg Grand Cru now constitute nearly 80% of the vineyard surface. A 3rd vineyard was added in 2014, the Zinckoeple Grand Cru in the municipality of Soultzmatt.

Facing South-East, the Grand Cru covers 28.15 hectares at an altitude ranging between 250 and 350 metres.

The sub-soil is made up of calcareous sandstone and micaceous sandstone (Muschelkalk at the base and Bundsandstein at the top). The texture is limestone-sandstone to marl-limestone-sandstone.

Pfingstberg wines have a great complexity, are austere when young and always require one to two years before they begin to open out: their long and refined acidities are the guarantee of a remarkable ageing capacity. These characteristics are partly due to the summit forest that provides the Pfingstberg with a constant supply of water and regular freshness.

Our vintage from the Paradis locality, which represents the historical plot of land within our domaine, is located at the very heart of the Grand Cru vineyard, on one of the steepest areas.

Our Riesling vineyards are located in the upper parts, where sandstone and limestone are dominant, thus providing this grape variety with smoothness and strength.

The Gewurztraminer vines are planted in the marlier areas, so as to take full advantage of the opulence provided by clays.

Grape varieties

We practice our wine-making in harmony with the land so that our grapes are harvested at their optimal maturity. Since 2005, our range of Grand Cru has been developed according to organic precepts and this since 2010 on the entirety of our estate. (Certification began in 2013).

To ensure the raw material is optimally preserved, the manually harvested grapes are loaded whole into the pneumatic press, with no trituration, so as to guarantee the smoothness of the juices.

The slow and gentle pressing process lasts between 4 and 8 hours. After racking, the natural yeasts ensure slow fermenting under our strict control of densities and temperature.

Maturing is carried out on fine lees or whole lees with re-slurrying so as to nourish the wine and ensure its natural stability.
Fine filtering will be the last stage of maturing before bottling.

It should be noted that in order to offer you the most impeccable wines, we have opted for the "Diam" cork that guarantees the absence of "cork taste" and also maintains the freshness and fruitiness of our wines.

In keeping with past traditions, all our grapes are hand-picked by successive selections in order to seek out the best of the mature grapes. The first sorting is done directly from the vine; a second selection is made on the sorting table, before pressing.