Wine Score
Grape Variety
Gewurztraminer Wine
Gewurztraminer (Gewürztraminer in German-language areas) is a pink-skinned grape variety that produces some of the world’s most distinctive aromatic wines. Its perfumed style is somewhat polarizing; fans adore its intense floral scent and sweet-spice flavors, while detractors lament its low acidity and lack of subtlety.
Gewurztraminer’s parentage is hard to trace. Modern research suggests that it is the aromatic mutation of Roter Traminer (Savagnin Rose), and therefore part of the ancient Savagnin-Traminer group of grape varieties, which have identical or near-identical DNA profiles. As such it is hard to locate a precise area of origin, though Savagnin is thought to have originated in what is now southwest Germany.
Gewurztraminer Grapes
Literally translated, Gewürztraminer means “spiced Traminer” (Traminer Aromatico in Italian). The second part of the word suggests the grape may have origins in Tramin (Termeno) in the Alto Adige region. But while documents mentioning wines from Tramin date back to the 1200s, the spicy variant of the Savagnin Rose grape did not exist in the region until the 19th Century. Recent studies suggest that German growers of the Gewürztraminer/Savagnon Rose grape created the confusion by naming the variety after the wines of the Tramin region, which by the 1400s were attracting international acclaim.
The best examples of Gewurztraminer are generally regarded as being from the grand cru vineyards of Alsace. It could even be argued that Alsace is the spiritual home of Gewürztraminer, despite the fact that it is not its ancestral home and that Gewürztraminer accounts for less than one-fifth of vineyard area in the region.
Gewürztraminer, as we know it today, arrived in Alsace from the Pfalz region – closer than most wine regions of France. The rich clay soils present in Alsace proved an ideal environment to produce full-bodied Gewürztraminer wines. The richness of dry, late-harvest, (vendage tardive), and botrytized very sweet (Sélection de Grains Nobles) Gewürztraminer wines in Alsace set the benchmark for which the variety is judged, and it is one of the grape varieties along with Riesling, Muscat and Pinot Gris which can be produced at Alsace Grand Cru level.
The primary aromatic descriptors used to define Gewürztraminer are typically lychee, rose petal, Turkish delight, tropical fruit and perfume. On the palate it is marked by its full texture, low acidity, stonefruit (mango, peach and apricot) and spicy (ginger and cinnamon) flavors.
Somewhat confusingly in Australia, the variety is often referred to as simply Traminer. The confusion is amplified by the recent discovery that a small amount of Savagnin Blanc – aka Traminer – is grown in the country, having been misidentified as Albarino for many years prior to 2009.
Notable examples of Gewürztraminer produced outside Alsace are from New Zealand, Oregon, Washington, Germany and northern Italy. It is also made under a wide number of synonyms in eastern Europe, but these wines are rarely exported.
Synonyms include: Traminer Aromatico, Traminer Musqué, Traminer, Gentil Aromatique, Savagnin Rose Aromatique.
Food matches for Gewurztraminer include:
Stir-fried pork with pickled plum (dry)
- Crayfish laksa (dry)
- Pannacotta (sweet)
- Enjoy this video about Gewurztraminer, from Sonoma Valley’s Kunde Family Estate.
Region
Furstentum Wine
Furstentum Grand Cru vineyard
Furstentum is an Alsace Grand Cru vineyard and appellation split between the communes of Kientzheim and Sigolsheim in the Haut-Rhin department of Alsace. The vineyard’s 30 hectares (74 acres) are mainly set aside for the cultivation of Gewürztraminer, along with smaller plantings of Pinot Gris and Riesling.
Located in the Kaysersberg valley, Furstentum lies at elevations of between 984 and 1312ft (300 and 400m) on the steep limestone slopes of the Montagne de Sigolsheim. These slopes have a south and southwesterly aspect, meaning that the vines are exposed to the ripening rays of the sun in the late morning and throughout the afternoon. The shape of the Kaysersberg valley also acts as a barrier to the wind and rain. Therefore, the vegetation here is noticeably different from the other hillsides in the area, as the loose limestone soils and sunny aspect encourage the growth of plants more commonly associated with the Mediterranean.
Furstentum was first mentioned in historical documents kept by the convent of Basel in 1330. More than 660 years later, in 1992, it was named as an Alsace Grand Cru vineyard. The wines of Furstentum are revered for their finesse and aromaticity, with Domaine Weinbach, Albert Mann and Domaine Paul Blanck ranking among the vineyard’s best producers.
Producer Notes
About Domaine Weinbach
Domaine Weinbach is a leading wine estate in the Alsace region. It is named after the “wine brook”, a small stream that runs through the main property, which is a former monastery near Kayserberg. The estate is known for its wines made at varying levels of sweetness from Riesling, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Sylvaner, Gewürztraminer and Muscat.
Domaine Weinbach
Unusually for the region, Weinbach only uses estate-grown grapes. It has holdings in four nearby Grand Cru vineyards on the slopes of the Weisbach Valley – Schlossberg, Furstentum, Mambourg and Marckgrain. Weinbach also owns the famous 5-hectare (12-acre) monopole, Le Clos des Capucins, which surrounds the cellars just below Schlossberg, and the Altenbourg vineyard adjacent to Furstentum.
All of the estate’s 28ha (69 acres) of vineyards have been farmed biodynamically since 2005 and are certified by Ecocert and Demeter. After a gentle, gradual pressing, the juice is slowly fermented in old oak vats using indigenous yeasts.
For several decades the estate was run by Colette Faller and her daughters, winemaker Laurence and sales director Catherine. Laurence died tragically young from a heart attack in 2014, and her mother passed away the following year. Catherine Faller now runs the estate with her sons.
