2020 Pinot Noir - Langsehl

Eric Colombain and Bruno Schueller are the men behind the domaine Lucie Colombain, and when we got the opportunity to work with a project that Bruno is part of, we were of course all ears. He is in charge of Domaine Gérard Schueller, where he makes the most extreme Alsatian wines that we know of that always offer great complexity and personality.

The story behind Lucie Colombain, however, starts in 1927, when a girl of the same name was born in Husseren Les Châteaux, where the Schueller family also belongs. From a very young age she worked in the vineyards with her father before eventually ending up making her own wine, which was mostly sold locally. Gérard Schueller played a big part in the town by virtue of his position as chairman of the area’s wine farmers and by virtue of his extremely authentic and unique wines that Lucie was a big fan of. Unfortunately, Lucie died in 1991 and for a few decades the grapes were instead sold to a cooperative. In 2018, however, Eric Colombain and his two brothers (who are all Lucie’s nephews) decided to revive the family’s wine production. Together with Bruno Schueller, they created the company Lucie Colombain as a tribute to Lucie, to strengthen the bond between the two families and to make wine true to their shared beliefs.

It may not come as a surprise that the Colombain family’s vineyards are near the Schueller family’s vineyards and in some cases even right next to them. Their chalky soils are some of the most sought after in the area and are planted with Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc, Riesling, Gewürztraminer and Pinot Noir.

All of Lucie Colombain’s wines are produced by Eric Colombain in Bruno Schueller’s cellar in collaboration with Bruno himself. The vinification takes place in old oak barrels, and the wines are made from grapes and nothing else. Any type of additions as well as fining and filtration are banned resulting in cool Alsatian wine that is completely free and unmanipulated.