Albert Boxler is, of course, one of Alsace’s most exclusive and famous producers. The venerable Boxler name has been a fixture on the landscape of Niedermorschwihr in the Haut-Rhin area of Alsace since 1673 when Jean Boxler’s ancestors moved there from Switzerland and settled the property. More recently, it dates from the beginning of World War II when current owner Jean’s grandfather Albert moved back to France from the great state of Montana, USA to fight Germans. The first harvest of grapes at the winery in the modern era dates to 1946 and, since then, this precision-oriented producer of intensely flavored, traditionally made wines has been one of the most sought after in all of Alsace, particularly since 1996 when young Jean took over the reins from his father Jean-Marc. Boxler’s holdings are centered on the famed Grand Cru vineyard called Sommerberg and virtually all the wines made here are from micro-parcels on this hallowed chunk of granite. Some become Reserve cuvees while there are also multiple bottlings labeled Sommerberg, a sparkling, this terrific Edelzwicker, a traditional white blended white from many sites and varieties, the wine that the Alsatians themselves drink. Jean Boxler says he’s not afraid to pull wine that would normally go into his Sommerbergs to make a great Edelzwicker and one taste will tell this ain’t your ordinary quaffer! The 2021 version is Pinot Blanc, Pinot Auxerrois, Muscat and Riesling. Normally when I taste an Edelzwicker, I feel that even though there are many grapes in the blend, nothing in particular ever stands out. In this wine, however, everything stood out! I could smell the Muscat’s exotic lychee and honeycomb, the Riesling’s peach pit intensity and there was Pinot Blanc, playing bass alongside the two tenors. What a wine! So vibrant, so multi-faceted, so much fun to drink! I can’t wait to get it open alongside some roast pork, preferably with a sauce made from some of my figs in the fall but apples would do now. Definitely the best Edelzwicker I can ever remember tasting