| Gewurztraminer Tasting Report |
I have had several Gewurztraminer wines from all over the
world. Most of them were ones I tried at in-store tastings,
wine-dinners, etc… I have also bought a few to bring home
and drink as well. The one thing I personally discovered about
the wine style is that they are definitely not for sipping over
and over. They require food to really shine. Their flavors and
aromas are so rich and powerful, they actually wear your
palate out if you don’t have other flavors and textures to spell
the wines. So, armed with my personal observations about
Gewurztraminer wines, I suggested to our staff that we hold
our tasting at Spice Thai Restaurant in Plano. Thai food is
rich in flavorful sauces and spicy dishes that present problems
for a lot of wine styles, however, Gewurztraminer with it’s own
bold and spicy flavors is always up for the challenge. What
our group learned from our experience was that indeed
Gewürztraminer is a wine-style that needs food to compliment
it. Most everything on Spice’s menu paired extremely well, I
even had a spicy beef dish with this white wine that made for a
great match. The spicy peanut sauce especially went well with
some of the wines in our tasting, as did the steamed
dumplings. The staff at Spice was more than accommodating
and went out of their way to make everything special for us.
Their food was wonderful as well and everyone was pleased
with our choice of restaurants.
As for the wines, you know, the real purpose of the evening, we
had nine different Gewurztraminer wines to taste. Three from
Alsace, France, the undisputed heavy-weight champion of
Gewurztraminer wines in the world, three from California, one
from Washington State, one from New Zealand and even one
from surprise, Canada. I was really happy with the variety
that we had, although I would have liked to have a German
one thrown in the mix as well for comparison.
Based on the results of our tasting, Alsace can safely still lay
claim to their Gewurztraminer throne taking the top two spots
by a landslide. The third and final Alsace wine was last, but it
had turned and was showing the first signs of becoming white
wine vinegar. The third through eighth wines were all so close
in scores that there was less than a two point difference
between number three and number eight. Once again for the
second tasting in a row, our staff selected the most expensive
wine in the tasting as their favorite. This is proof positive that
I am successfully turning them all into bonified wine snobs!!!
I think we all agreed by the end of our tasting that
Gewurztraminer is a wine style to be enjoyed once in a while,
rather than on a daily basis. It is fun to drink in small doses
and I can’t emphasize enough, the importance of having food
with it. It really does enhance the wine and the wine the food.
Here are the results of our tasting:
world. Most of them were ones I tried at in-store tastings,
wine-dinners, etc… I have also bought a few to bring home
and drink as well. The one thing I personally discovered about
the wine style is that they are definitely not for sipping over
and over. They require food to really shine. Their flavors and
aromas are so rich and powerful, they actually wear your
palate out if you don’t have other flavors and textures to spell
the wines. So, armed with my personal observations about
Gewurztraminer wines, I suggested to our staff that we hold
our tasting at Spice Thai Restaurant in Plano. Thai food is
rich in flavorful sauces and spicy dishes that present problems
for a lot of wine styles, however, Gewurztraminer with it’s own
bold and spicy flavors is always up for the challenge. What
our group learned from our experience was that indeed
Gewürztraminer is a wine-style that needs food to compliment
it. Most everything on Spice’s menu paired extremely well, I
even had a spicy beef dish with this white wine that made for a
great match. The spicy peanut sauce especially went well with
some of the wines in our tasting, as did the steamed
dumplings. The staff at Spice was more than accommodating
and went out of their way to make everything special for us.
Their food was wonderful as well and everyone was pleased
with our choice of restaurants.
As for the wines, you know, the real purpose of the evening, we
had nine different Gewurztraminer wines to taste. Three from
Alsace, France, the undisputed heavy-weight champion of
Gewurztraminer wines in the world, three from California, one
from Washington State, one from New Zealand and even one
from surprise, Canada. I was really happy with the variety
that we had, although I would have liked to have a German
one thrown in the mix as well for comparison.
Based on the results of our tasting, Alsace can safely still lay
claim to their Gewurztraminer throne taking the top two spots
by a landslide. The third and final Alsace wine was last, but it
had turned and was showing the first signs of becoming white
wine vinegar. The third through eighth wines were all so close
in scores that there was less than a two point difference
between number three and number eight. Once again for the
second tasting in a row, our staff selected the most expensive
wine in the tasting as their favorite. This is proof positive that
I am successfully turning them all into bonified wine snobs!!!
I think we all agreed by the end of our tasting that
Gewurztraminer is a wine style to be enjoyed once in a while,
rather than on a daily basis. It is fun to drink in small doses
and I can’t emphasize enough, the importance of having food
with it. It really does enhance the wine and the wine the food.
Here are the results of our tasting:
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| Rene’ Mure’ “Tradition” 2002 Gewurztraminer – Alsace, France |
Nose – Rich and bountiful doses of
enticing fresh peach and apricot aromas
Taste – Very smooth with a great mouth
feel, slightly understated, but elegantly
so. The wine finishes with many layers
of honey and peaches.
This was the star of the show. Excellent
on the palate and very complimentary
with the food. Hands down the best
choice on the list.
enticing fresh peach and apricot aromas
Taste – Very smooth with a great mouth
feel, slightly understated, but elegantly
so. The wine finishes with many layers
of honey and peaches.
This was the star of the show. Excellent
on the palate and very complimentary
with the food. Hands down the best
choice on the list.
| Score B+ |
| Price $22.00 |
| Trimbach 2001 Gewurztraminer – Alsace, France |
Nose – Lush aromas of apricots and
warm baked gingerbread
Taste – Although this wine had a lighter
body then most, it never left you
wanting with many layers of exotic fruits
like mangos, apricots and peaches. All
nicely done
Hey, if you are going to have a
Gewurztraminer tasting, you’ve got to
have a Trimbach wine, right? Very
pleasing and great with the food as were
most of the wines in the tasting. I was
somewhat shocked that it was as fruity
as it was coming from Alsace, I
expected it to be subtler in that arena.
There was more than a two-point drop
between our second and third place
wines.
warm baked gingerbread
Taste – Although this wine had a lighter
body then most, it never left you
wanting with many layers of exotic fruits
like mangos, apricots and peaches. All
nicely done
Hey, if you are going to have a
Gewurztraminer tasting, you’ve got to
have a Trimbach wine, right? Very
pleasing and great with the food as were
most of the wines in the tasting. I was
somewhat shocked that it was as fruity
as it was coming from Alsace, I
expected it to be subtler in that arena.
There was more than a two-point drop
between our second and third place
wines.
| Score B+ |
| Price $16.00 |
| Chateau Ste. Michelle 2003 Gewurztraminer – Columbia Valley, WA |
Nose – Gently spoken with subtle peach
and tart apricots
Taste – This wine walks a thin line
between sweet and sour with its medium
body and tempting flavors of freshly
sliced Granny Smith yellow apples.
I think some people were shocked that
this wine did as well as it did in our
tasting. I wasn’t though, Chateau Ste.
Michelle has been focusing on German
grape varieties for quite some time and
having great success with them. Plus
the climate in Washington State is well
suited for those grape styles. I think
the real shock here is that it was the
cheapest wine in the tasting! Good
news indeed!
and tart apricots
Taste – This wine walks a thin line
between sweet and sour with its medium
body and tempting flavors of freshly
sliced Granny Smith yellow apples.
I think some people were shocked that
this wine did as well as it did in our
tasting. I wasn’t though, Chateau Ste.
Michelle has been focusing on German
grape varieties for quite some time and
having great success with them. Plus
the climate in Washington State is well
suited for those grape styles. I think
the real shock here is that it was the
cheapest wine in the tasting! Good
news indeed!
| Score B |
| Price $8.00 |
| Gray Monk 2003 Gewurztraminer – Okanagan Valley, Canada |
Nose – Gorgeous aromas of spring
roses and spicy gingerbread. Fantastic!
Taste – Very viscous and full-bodied
with a luxurious honeyed texture and
taste. Plenty of spicy fruits and an
interesting finish.
Not being familiar with many Canadian
wines, other than their wonderful Ice
wines, I wasn’t sure what to make of
this when I saw it. After tasting though,
I was immediately charmed by it. It was
my personal second favorite and I
actually went back and forth between
this one and our first place wine.
You’ve got to try this! Way to go
Canada!
roses and spicy gingerbread. Fantastic!
Taste – Very viscous and full-bodied
with a luxurious honeyed texture and
taste. Plenty of spicy fruits and an
interesting finish.
Not being familiar with many Canadian
wines, other than their wonderful Ice
wines, I wasn’t sure what to make of
this when I saw it. After tasting though,
I was immediately charmed by it. It was
my personal second favorite and I
actually went back and forth between
this one and our first place wine.
You’ve got to try this! Way to go
Canada!
| Score B |
| Price $13.00 |
| Adler Fels 2003 Gewurztraminer – Russian River Valley, California |
Nose – Enormous waves of floral
gardenias, like walking into Bath &
Body Works. Terrific!
Taste – Unfortunately, after that
wonderful nose, the wine leaves you a
little flat with its neutral character.
There are feint traces of vanilla and
mangos, but overall, very tame.
Hey if a wine was judged by smell alone,
this could have been the winner.
Despite its neutral flavors, it was a very
good food wine and that is important too!
gardenias, like walking into Bath &
Body Works. Terrific!
Taste – Unfortunately, after that
wonderful nose, the wine leaves you a
little flat with its neutral character.
There are feint traces of vanilla and
mangos, but overall, very tame.
Hey if a wine was judged by smell alone,
this could have been the winner.
Despite its neutral flavors, it was a very
good food wine and that is important too!
| Score B |
| Price $13.00 |
| Firestone Vineyard 2003 Gewurztraminer – Santa Ynez Valley, California |
Nose – Floral accents of acacia
hawthorne
Taste – This Gewurz was very dry and a
little tart with spicy nutmeg and apricots
on the finish.
Initially I liked this one a lot, but after
going back and tasting it again later, it
fell a little out of favor for me. Oh well,
if the Firestone’s don’t sell a lot of their
Gewurztraminer wines, Andrew can
always go back to doing another episode
of the Batchelor!
hawthorne
Taste – This Gewurz was very dry and a
little tart with spicy nutmeg and apricots
on the finish.
Initially I liked this one a lot, but after
going back and tasting it again later, it
fell a little out of favor for me. Oh well,
if the Firestone’s don’t sell a lot of their
Gewurztraminer wines, Andrew can
always go back to doing another episode
of the Batchelor!
| Score B |
| Price $10.50 |
| De Loach 2001 Early Harvest Gewurztraminer – Russian River Valley, California |
Nose – Snappy with ginger peach candy
and limes
Taste – Very unusual, the most unique
of our tasting with candied fruit flavors
and a bit of apple cider.
Some people really like this one, but I
thought it tasted funky. It was one of
the least successful with food.
and limes
Taste – Very unusual, the most unique
of our tasting with candied fruit flavors
and a bit of apple cider.
Some people really like this one, but I
thought it tasted funky. It was one of
the least successful with food.
| Price $12.00 |
| Score B |
| Huia 2002 Gewurztraminer – Marlborough, New Zealand |
Nose – This wine is very closed with
only feint traces of honeysuckle
Taste – Again, like the nose implies,
very short on flavor and almost
completely neutral with some ginger
flavors getting through to the palate
Even though this wine did not have
much flavor, it was alright with the food,
probably because there was nothing to
get in the way of the taste of the food.
It’s interesting to note, that the last time
we did a tasting at Spice’s was for our
Sauvignon Blanc tasting and Huia was
the big winner of that tasting.
only feint traces of honeysuckle
Taste – Again, like the nose implies,
very short on flavor and almost
completely neutral with some ginger
flavors getting through to the palate
Even though this wine did not have
much flavor, it was alright with the food,
probably because there was nothing to
get in the way of the taste of the food.
It’s interesting to note, that the last time
we did a tasting at Spice’s was for our
Sauvignon Blanc tasting and Huia was
the big winner of that tasting.
| Price $16.00 |
| Score B |
| Leon Beyer 1998 Gewurztraminer – Alsace, France |
Nose – Overwhelming aromas of
varnish with hints of turpentine
Taste – Yuck! Vinegar in the making!
This wine is going down like the next
Jennifer Lopez marriage!
That’s the last time I buy an old white
wine at a big wine closeout sale!!!
varnish with hints of turpentine
Taste – Yuck! Vinegar in the making!
This wine is going down like the next
Jennifer Lopez marriage!
That’s the last time I buy an old white
wine at a big wine closeout sale!!!
| Price $15.00 |
| Score D |
