|
|
|
|
WINES By Chuck Hill
About Chuck
CHUCK'S CURRENT REVIEWS
BY VARIETAL
Chuck's Wine Reviews
|
Wines of the Week Archive
A Spicy Gew I don't know how long the consumer wine market will put up with Gewürztraminer. It breaks my heart to see a lovely, traditional varietal fade into obscurity (or blended away into non-descript white wines), but the wine carries tongue-twisting, polysyllabicism to extremes and not every bottling gives the spicy pleasure sought by the cognoscenti. If you find a perfect example, you can enjoy aromas and flavors of lychee, spicy tea, rose petal, citrus, stone fruits and pear drop. Non-perfect examples (there are many) offer pleasing combinations of pear, apple, citrus and floral notes - just not the hallmark lychee, tea and rose petal (sigh). Here are some examples that you can savor with smoked fish, charcuterie or your favorite cheese and crackers.
August Cellars
August Cellars makes its home on the Schaad family farm on Chehalem Mountain in the Chehalem Mountains AVA. The winery is named for August Schaad who founded the family farm after emigrating from Germany in the 1890s. Descendents of the founder now operate the farm and winery. August Cellars Gewürztraminer was a standout at our tasting showing aromas of musky rose petal and stone fruits with flavors of lychee and citrus on the light-bodied palate.
Brandborg Winery The
Brandborg Winery is located in Elkton, Oregon in the Umpqua Valley AVA
where the founders purchased the property in 2001. This shimmering
beauty of a wine offers all the exotic pleasure one expects from
Gewürztraminer. A nose of lychee, tea rose, grapefruit and light
vanilla leads to flavors of citrus, baking spice and tropical fruits
with crisp acidity balanced by 2.38% residual sugar.
Amity Vineyards Myron Redford's iconic Oregon winery celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2010 and, over four decades, has helped spread the good word about the Willamette Valley and the delicious wines made there. Amity winemaker Darcy Pendergrass crafted this tasty Gewurz featuring clear varietal aromas of spicy lychee, rose petal and delicate tea. The palate has nice body and good acid balance - a nice accompaniment to many foods.
Pacific Rim
Spawned by Randall Grahm (of Rhone Ranger fame), the Pacific Rim brand
began with Riesling and has stayed that course adding just a few
exceptions including this flavorful Gewürztraminer. Sniff for aromas of
ripe pear and apricot with notes of spice and floral perfume. Forward
flavors of stone fruits and citrus welcome a bite of your medium to
light mealtime fare.
Chateau Ste. Michelle My
first serious Gewürztraminer experience was a vertical tasting of the
varietal vinted in the 1975, 1976 and 1977 vintages. At the time, the
Chateau was moving from a sweeter wine profile to a drier one, so the
comparison was very interesting. We also included a Alsatian wine and
two other Northwest bottlings. More than 30 years later, look for
aromas of stone fruits, floral perfume and clove, leading to a crisp
palate that brims with citrus and spice, perfect for
Phelps Creek Vineyards The current leader in becoming the most-talked-about winery in the Columbia Gorge AVA, Phelps Creek Vineyards produces a variety of wines including Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Gewürztraminer and other blends under the Mt. Defiance Wine Company brand. An ongoing consultant to winemaker Rich Cushman is Alexandrine Roy, a bi-continental, fourth-generation Vigneron from France, who contributes with superb insights. A nose of dusty rose, peach and vanilla cloaks a core of lychee and citrus with notes of floral perfume and pear. Flavors echo the aroma, and the wine is rich on the palate.
Steppe Cellars This successful family vineyard operation in Sunnyside, Washington branched out into winemaking in 2005, utilizing the skills of veteran winemaker Anke Freimuth-Wildman to craft their wines. Anke's 20-year experience in the Columbia Valley and education in her native Germany at Geisenheim qualifies her as an expert in the field. The 2008 Steppe Cellars Gewürztraminer offers aromas of lemony citrus, vanilla and floral perfume. The palate adds notes of lychee and rose petal with fine balance and exceptional food friendliness.
Airlie Winery Grab some Asian takeout food and enjoy this dry-style Gewürztraminer with your dinner! Tucked into a wooded cove outside of Monmouth, Oregon, Airlie Winery makes a wide variety of white wines and a few reds, mostly from fruit grown in their own 32-acre vineyard. Aromas of dusty rose, apple, and spicy pear lead to similar flavors with hints of grapefruit and mineral added in.
AlexEli Vineyard & Winery
AlexEli is located southeast of Woodburn, Oregon, in the East Willamette
Valley area. The family vineyard and small winery produce handcrafted
wines, and the owners are in the tasting room on weekends to pour it for
you. The 2009 Gewürztraminer offers aromas of dusty rose, grapefruit
and mineral. Flavors of citrus, pear and apple are joined with notes
of anise and lychee. Tasty with lighter fare.
Hogue Cellars Hogue Cellars has been making Gewürztraminer from Columbia Valley fruit for many years. The grapes are harvested fully ripe to ensure the spicy quality for which the variety is known. Slow, cool fermentation maintains this fruit quality in the final bottling. Aromas of lemon, lime zest, lychee and pear invite a sip, revealing flavors of lemon-lime citrus, lychee, apricot and floral perfume. The wine is off dry at 2% residual sugar to tame spicy Thai or other Asian cuisine.
Desert Wind Winery Desert Wind Winery is located in Prosser, Washington, featuring southwest-inspired architecture and elegant appointments, guest rooms and complete kitchen and banquet facilities. Their late harvest sweet Gewürztraminer is just the ticket for sipping with a little cheese and shortbread after a meal. Aromas of white raisins, peach and baked apples lead to flavors of dried white plums, caramel and peach nectar.
Francis Tannahill Talented winemakers Cheryl Francis and Sam Tannahill joined together in 2001 to craft wines that "balance power and concentration with integrity and elegance." Their 2007 Gewürztraminer is sourced from The Dragonfly Vineyard in the Columbia Gorge near White Salmon, Washington. Look for aromas of pear, lychee and herbal notes inviting a taste which reveals spicy pear, lychee, floral perfume and citrus.
Pheasant Valley Winery Made from fruit harvested at the famed Celilo Vineyard in the Columbia Gorge, this Gewürztraminer is "semi-sweet" and is a great accompaniment to Asian fare if one prefers the sweeter dinner wine style, or with cheese and shortbread after dinner as a dessert wine. The aroma is classic Gewürztraminer with lychee and floral notes playing over pear and peach. Flavors of stone fruits and floral perfume mark the succulent palate.
River's Edge Winery River's Edge Winery began with the purchase of two vineyards near Elkton, Oregon, in 1996 by Mike and Vonnie Landt. The Landts were absentee owners from the Midwest until moving permanently to the property in 2005. Many helpers and part-time employees have contributed to the winery's success. Their 2009 Gewürztraminer offers aromas of ripe stone fruits and floral perfume with hints of butter. Flavors of peach and honeyed pear are complemented by a light finish of citrus.
Ewe Eye White is made by Camas Prairie Winery, Idaho's oldest independent winery, founded by Stu and Susan Scott in 1983. The clever Mona Lisa with an ovine twist introduces the winery's Gewürztraminer bottling. Look for aromas of earthy grapefruit and honey with flavors of sweet spicy pear and peach.
Tyee Wine Cellars Located on the Buchanan Family's Century Farm near Corvallis, Oregon, Tyee Wine Cellars celebrated their 26th year in 2010. Daughter Merrilee Buchanan Benson is the winemaker crafting Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Gewürztraminer and Pinot Noir. The 2009 Gewürztraminer shows aromas and flavors of light pear and peach with hints of vanilla and baking spice.
Oak Knoll Winery One of Oregon's pioneer wineries, founded in 1970, Oak Knoll is the original winery located in Washington County. For more than forty years, the winery tasting room outside Hillsboro continues to be a favorite stop for peripatetic wine lovers of all stripes. The 2007 Gewürztraminer is a zesty wine with aromas and flavors of pear, citrus and floral perfume - nice with Asian cuisine. Wines from other areas:
Fetzer Vineyards Fetzer Vineyards was founded in Mendocino County in 1968 and a decade later was one of the first California wineries to produce Gewürztraminer. Later achievements include sustainable viticulture and a dedication to environmentally sound winemaking and production. This wine offers a bright nose of melon, vanilla, floral perfume and spicy lychee. The palate shows flavors of pear, lemon custard, baking spice and citrus - a great value and excellent food wine.
# # #
One-year
Archive of previous
Wines of the Week reviews
Copyright
© 2010 Chuck Hill |
