The wine trading company with its current headquarters in the town of Ribeauvillé is located in the French wine growing region of
Alsace (Haut-Rhin). It has a history of almost four hundred years, because already in 1626 Jean Trimbach founded a wine trade in Riquewihr. In 1673, King Louis XVI (1754-1793) visited the house. Under the leadership of Jean-Frédéric Trimbach (born 1811) the business was expanded. He moved the company's headquarters to Hunawihr, where he was mayor for many years. The parent company in Riquewihr was sold to the archrival
Hugel et Fils, who still owns it today
His son Frédéric-Emile travelled the world to promote exports. High awards at the World Exhibition in Brussels in 1898 increased the reputation of the company. Frédéric-Emile began to bottle the wines, instead of selling them in large containers as was previously the case. Under his son Frédéric-Théodore, the Trimbach company headquarters was moved to Ribeauvillé after the First World War. He was instrumental in replacing the
hybrids, which were widespread in Alsace at the time, with noble varieties. Today, the house, which is still family-owned, is managed by Hubert and his brother Bernard, together with Bernard's sons, Pierre and Jean in the 11th and 12th generation, and Anne (Pierre's daughter) in the 13th generation
Around 80,000 cases of wine are produced annually, a third of which go to the USA, where Trimbach has a market share of 35% of Alsace wines. The company's own vineyards cover around 40 hectares of vines. They are mainly planted with Riesling and Gewürztraminer, as well as Pinot Noir, Sylvaner, Muscat d'Alsace (Muscat Blanc), Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris. Some of them are located in the Grand Cru sites
Geisberg,
Osterberg and
Rosacker. However, it is the tradition of the house not to mention these names on the label, i.e.
not to market them under the AC
Alsace Grand Cru
There are three absolute premium wines. The first is the long-lasting Riesling "Clos Ste-Hune" from the homonymous
Lieu-dit (plot) of only 1.3 hectares of the Rosacker site, of which only 7,000 bottles per vintage are (or can be) produced. However, this is not produced at all in less good years. The second is the "Frédéric Émile" cuvée, named in honour of the ancestor, made from very old Riesling vines, of which there is also only a limited number of around 4,000 cases a year. And the third is the Gewürztraminer "Cuvée des Seigneurs de Ribeaupierre". It also produces Vendanges Tardives (late harvests) and Sélection de Grains Nobles (sweet wines made from noble rotten grapes).
