Gewürztraminer Wine's History, Traits and Food Parings

Wine drinkers vary tremendously in their tastes and preferences for food pairings. Wine lovers who appreciate a full bodied, robust white wine that can be paired with a wide range of dishes especially love Gewürztraminer wines.

Although its name is German, this wine has its roots in Northern Italy. Until the 16th century, the Traminer grape was widely grown inItaly's Tyrollean Alps, which is near the village of Tramin, located in the Alto Adige region. This explains the second part of the wine's name. The prefix, Gewürz, has the popular translation "spicy," although some argue it could also mean "perfumed."

 

The Traminer vine mutated centuries ago, leading to a wine that is more colorful, flavorful and distinctive than the original. This mutated Traminer was and still is given many different names:

The wine is known for being very crisp and spicy. While it has varying degrees of sweetness and dryness, this wine is distinct in its colors, flavors and scents.

 

The wine is full bodied, which is rare in white wines. It has characteristics and flavors of flowers, specifically roses and gardenias, fruits like lychee, peaches and mangos, and spices like nutmeg and cloves. The grapes grow best in cooler climates such as those of:

The wine is formally called Gewurztraminer d'Alsace Domaine Stoeffler, which attests to the fact that Gewürztraminer grapes are planted in a French region called Alsace, located between Germany and France. This region is best known for its fabulous dry Gewürztraminer wines.

 

The thick skins of these unique grapes can make for excellent outcomes or big problems. High sugar levels provide a high alcohol content in certain dry Gewürztraminer versions, while high pH balance and low acidity can cause problems in other variations of the finished wine.

The color of the grapes is a dark pink, with shades of brown. The skin is very thick and tough. The color of the berry results in the wine becoming a light to dark golden yellow.

 

The wine sometimes has copper, gold or peach tones, depending on when the fruit was harvested. The fruit buds early in the spring, but since the fruit grows best in cooler climates, lower temperatures cause the fruit to be more vulnerable to frost. Early harvesting keeps the acidity in the fruit, but leads to less variety in the finished product.

Gewürztraminer is a white wine, which means that it is most commonly paired with chicken and fish dishes. Because the wine is full bodied and considered "spicy," it pairs well with other spicy foods, such as dishes made with capsaicin, otherwise known as hot pepper, Asian five spice and curry. Like most wines, it pairs well with fruit and cheeses.

The wine is common throughout Europe, particularly in Italy and France. However, American vineyards such as those in Washington, Oregon and the cooler climates of California also produce Gewürztraminer. They are very popular and well-received by critics.

 

Navarro, Thomas Fogarty and Fetzer are all brands worthy of a taste test. All are award winners, show exemplary style or provide excellent value for money. Italy's Colterenzio Gewurztraminer and California's Gan Eden Gewurztraminer are also well liked.