Pierre Frick

Domaine Pierre Frick is a twelve-generation Alsace estate in Pfaffenheim, in the Haut-Rhin. The family has been making wine here since roughly the late 1600s, though the modern domaine was shaped by Pierre and Annette Frick, who converted to organic farming in 1970. Their son Jean-Pierre and his wife Chantal took the next step in 1981, achieving Demeter biodynamic certification - among the earliest biodynamic producers not just in Alsace but in all of France. Their son Thomas now represents the latest generation working alongside his parents.

Twelve hectares distributed across a dozen parcels on predominantly limestone soils, including three Grand Crus: Steinert (Pfaffenheim), Eichberg (Eguisheim), and Vorbourg (Rouffach). All Alsace varieties are represented: Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Pinot Gris, Muscat, Sylvaner, Chasselas, Pinot Blanc, Auxerrois, and Pinot Noir - with a particular affinity for Sylvaner, which they treat more seriously than most Alsace estates bother to.

The philosophy is uncompromising and has been for decades. No chaptalization since 1988. The first no-sulphur cuvées appeared in the late 1990s (a 1999 Riesling was among the earliest), and since approximately 2002 the majority of production is their Purs Vins line - zero added sulphites. Spontaneous fermentation with indigenous yeasts, aging six to nine months on fine lees in old oak foudres. In 2002 they replaced corks with stainless-steel crown caps across the range - a radical and polarising decision aimed at eliminating cork taint and ensuring homogeneous bottle aging. Production is around seventy thousand bottles a year.

The range includes Cuvées Classiques, site-specific lieux-dits (Bergweingarten, Bihl, Rot Murle, Strangenberg), the three Grand Crus, and the Cuvée Précieuse. skin-contact-like macération wines from Pinot Gris and Riesling add an amber dimension.

Pierre Frick is a reference estate for natural wine in Alsace and in France more broadly - a family that adopted biodynamics four decades before it became fashionable, and dropped sulphur two decades before it became a talking point.