The Dirt on Gewürztraminer

What a grape! It’s hard not to get excited about a varietal I have spent a lot of time with. Living in the Okanagan we are spoiled, having plenty of Gewurztraminer in some beautifully varying styles. When my husband and I head out to wine tastings we always try a Gew if it’s on the tasting menu and if it isn’t we tend to bring one home so we can give it a go.

Back in June my family went to the Naramata Bench and we picked up a few bottles, one of which we scored in the High Five Wine Scoring System Facebook group recently. Head in there to watch the Gewurztraminer Scoring Week video and find out more about this incredible grape. The reason I personally enjoy this grape varietal is for its consistency nearly anywhere you find it. The grape almost always boasts lychee and spice - telltale signs you have Gewurztraminer in your glass. It can range from bone dry all the way to sweet.

So where does it grow?

France

Alsace

Moldova

Italy

USA

Washington
Oregon
New York
California

Ukraine
South Australia
Bulgaria
Czech Republic

Canada

Okanagan Valley

New Zealand

Russia
Romania
Slovakia
Austria
Spain

South Africa

Stellenbosch

Luxembourg

Hungary

Grapes here are called Tramini, Drumin and Pinot Cervena.

Stylistically you can find drier styles of Gewurztraminer in Alsace where dry wines are called trocken and off-dry wines are called halb-trocken. These wines will lend themselves to fruit, floral and spicy notes. Other places worth noting for dry Gew would be Italy, California, Washington and the Okanagan.

If you're looking for sweeter Gewurztraminer you can expect to find them in Germany as late harvest or Spatlese wines.

Oh, and notably the most important thing about Gewurztraminer is its pronunciation:

ga-vertz-trah-mee-ner

Or you can just call it Gew.

Happy Scoring, High Fivers!

xo

Tonia