Dopff & Irion

To the Renaissance, the vineyards in Alsace are thriving, especially in Riquewihr. Building is going on everywhere, trade is booming, wine is a precious commodity. The Dopff and the Irion families put their heart and soul into winegrowing. Wines from Riquewihr were famed throughout Europe.

The tale of a pioneer: René Dopff, one of André Malraux’ closest friends, who took over Dopff & Irion in 1945…

He broke away from the old wine making techniques and looked to the terroir rather than to the grape variety. He decided to divide the vineyard at the Château de Riquewihr into four estates, which he rechristened with typically French names: Les Murailles, Les Sorcières, Les Maquisards and Les Amandiers.

He opted for clearer labelling, abandoning gothic lettering in favour of a more sober script.

These wines, made solely from the four noble grape varieties, expressed the very soul of the terroir. From that day on, each estate was dedicated to a particular variety.

René Dopff then proceeded to ensure that his wines graced the best tables in France and the world over. He supplied wines to the Palais de l’Elysée, the French President’s residence and for the launch of the luxury liner, “France”…

We at Dopff are proud of our inheritance and it is our duty to ensure that continues to thrive and prosper. Our love of wine, of our vines, of our region is an invitation to a voyage…

DOPFF & IRION makes its wines from 27 hectares of vines within the district of Riquewihr, a large area considering the usual size of estates in Alsace (60% of production sites cover less than one hectare).
 

There is no question that the area around Riquewihr is blessed with every possible natural attribute for successful vine cultivation. The climate is such that the grapes ripen slowly. To the west, the Vosges mountains minimize oceanic influences, whilst to the north, the famous Schoenenbourg hill protects the site from cold north winds.
 
The amazing variety of geological formations in Alsace makes these vineyards some of the most complex in the world. The one at Riquewihr is located on one of the main fissure areas in Alsace. This veritable mosaic of soils and sub-soils (marl, limestone, gypsum, clay, sandstone…..) means that the wines reflect the various types of terroir.

 
The experience of several generations has allowed us to determine which grape varieties are suited to which terroir, this is why there are four estates at the Château de Riquewihr, each one with its own particular grape variety.

“Les Murailles” for Riesling

“Les Sorcières” for Gewurztraminer

“Les Amandiers” for Muscat

“Les Maquisards” for Pinot Gris

“Les Tonnelles” for Pinot Noir

Furthermore, over one third of the whole area within these estates is classed as Grand Cru, SCHOENENBOURG and SPOREN.

Harvesting

The northerly location of the vineyards in Alsace makes the quest for optimal maturity all the more important. As soon as the grape berries begin to change colour, levels of maturity in each vineyard are checked regularly so that the grapes are harvested as ripe as possible. Harvesting is therefore timed to pinpoint the best balance between levels of sugar and acidity. The grapes are picked by hand and sorted if necessary. Then they are taken to the cellars in partially filled baskets to avoid crushing the berries.

Gentle pressing

The grapes are left whole and transported to the press by conveyer belt. They are pressed slowly and gradually, only the juice from the first pressing will be used to ferment our estate wines.

Ageing

After racking and controlled-temperature fermentation, the wines remain on their fine lees for several months before bottling. They will not be sold for two to four years.

Only mature and healthy grapes can yield great wines. The more concentrated the fruit, the greater the expression of the terroir. This is why we limit our yields to below the levels established by the INAO. Yields for our Grands Crus never exceed 45 to 50 hectolitres per hectare and we make our estate wines according to Grand Cru standards.
 
Pruning: Our vines are short pruned and the canes cut back to half size. This way, we eliminate the tip which is the most productive part of the vine and as such, gives the lowest quality. Ordinary pruning leaves 11 to 12 buds but short pruning leaves only 7 or 8.

Grass growing: Leaving grass between one out of two rows of vines renders the vine less productive. It therefore produces fewer bunches and these grapes are smaller and therefore richer in sugar, they also have thicker skins.

Crop thinning: At fruit set, at the beginning of August, if nature has been too generous, we eliminate some of the bunches to promote maturity and concentrate the vine’s richness in a smaller quantity of fruit.
Organic soil fertilization: Only natural fertilizers are used in order to maintain the soil’s biological balance and the typicity of the terroir (organic matter such as grass cut from rows between the vines and crushed vine prunings).