Gewürztraminer is a white wine whose character in the glass is so unique and so pronounced that it is one of the most recognizable varietals with just one sniff. The loud lychee nut is a dead giveaway, along with gingerbread and roses.
(This article was written for GrapeBunch, our weekly wine periodical. Click here to read the original!)
(This article was written for GrapeBunch, our weekly wine periodical. Click here to read the original!)
"Traminer" is the family of grapes that it belongs to. "Gewürz" means "spice" in German, but in this case it's not really referring to being hot spicy, but rather featuring spices that you would have in your spice rack, which it totally does. It's also a great name to have for one of its best food pairings: spicy Asian food.
The grapes are naturally low in acidity, so that combined with the strength of its character leads some to believe that Gewürztraminer is sweet when in reality most of them are dry. This pink-skinned variety that produces white wine could have actually originated in northeast Italy, near Austria. But it's Alsace, France (which has shifted between France and Germany throughout its history and has more of a German culture than French) is universally accepted as the best place in the world for dry and expressive Gewürztraminer.
As previously stated, Gewürztraminer is fantastic with spicy Asian food, but because of its low acidity it's also great with rich pork dishes. In my personal opinion it's the perfect wine for a classic turkey dinner; especially for Thanksgiving because it also goes well with all those other traditional choices that come along with it.
France, Germany, and Italy aren't the only places you can get Gewürztraminer from! You can also look to the USA!
The Alexander Valley Vineyards winery is located in the Alexander Valley of Sonoma, but the fruit from Alexander Valley Vineyards "Gewürz" Gewürztraminer comes from Mendocino. This wine has tropical spices, lychee nut, pears, and wet stone.
ALEXANDER VALLEY VINEYARDS GEWÜRZTRAMINER
The Alexander Valley Vineyards winery is located in the Alexander Valley of Sonoma, but the fruit from Alexander Valley Vineyards "Gewürz" Gewürztraminer comes from Mendocino. This wine has tropical spices, lychee nut, pears, and wet stone.
This article was written for The GrapeBunch Wine Periodical.
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Joey Casco
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Certified Specialist of Wine
Certified Specialist of Spirits
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