As I wrote in this week’s restaurant review of Urban Hill in Utah Bites, during a recent dinner at that outstanding restaurant we were introduced to a wonderful wine by Urban Hill’s Sommelier and Beverage Manager, Bijan Ghiai. To accompany the delicious crudo appetizer and to pair with my roasted chicken entree and my wife’s striped bass, he selected a beautiful wine from Alsace – Domaine Christophe Mittnacht Gyotaku. 

Domaine Mittnacht is a family-operated wine estate in France’s Alsace region run by Christophe and Yuka Mittnacht. It was founded in 1958. The estate is certified biodynamic and among the wines produced there are Riesling, PInot Gris, Gewurztraminer, Pinot Noir, and Cremant sparkling wines, as well as the one we’re focused on here: Gyotaku. 

Gyotaku is a traditional Japanese method of using fish and other sea creatures as its printing plates and Domaine Christophe Mittnacht Gyotaku wine features such a print on its label. 

Christophe was an early pioneer in Alsace of biodynamic winemaking, officially certified biodynamic in 1999, and his Gyotaku is made with grapes from 30+ year old vines planted in limestone and clay terroir, which lends this wine its wonderful minerality. 

Gyotaku is a beautiful blend of 45% Pinot Blanc, 23% Pinot Gris, 16% Gewurztraminer, 8% Riesling, and 8% Muscat. It’s a very aromatic wine, soft and peachy tasting with nice acidity and flavors of Asian pear, honeysuckle, apricot, ginger, peach and hints of mango. According to the Domaine, Gyotaku was made specifically to drink with sushi and sashimi and created by teaming together French winemakers Agnès and Jean-François Bachelet with a Japanese chef. So, give it a try the next time you enjoy sushi or other Asian foods like Vietnamese, Indian or Thai.