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More wines available from St. Michael Eppan
750ml
Bottle:
$40.70
Rated 92 - Some oak spices and a hint of nougat to the fresh lemon and star fruit. Quite bright and textured, with...
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Rated 91 - Pure and subtle nose with sliced apples and some herbs and stones. Textured, fresh and weighty on the...
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Rated 91 - A pretty flavorful pinot bianco here that shows a mineral twist to the dried herbs and white fruit. A tad...
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Rated 90 - Pure, neutral stone fruit with some green apples, lime and minerals. Elegant and light on the palate with...
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Winery
St. Michael Eppan
Vintage: 2012
2012 has, so far been a positive year for wineries around the world. While it may be a little too early to speak of the wines being made in the northern hemisphere, European and North American wineries have already begun reporting that their harvesting season has been generally very good, and are predicting to continue with the kind of successes they saw in 2011. However, 2012 has been something of a late year for France, due to unpredictable weather throughout the summer, and the grapes were ripening considerably later than they did in 2011 (which was, admittedly, an exceptionally early year). French wineries are claiming, though, that this could well turn out to be advantageous, as the slow ripening will allow the resulting wines to express more flavour and features of the terroir they are grown in.
The southern hemisphere has seen ideal climatic conditions in most of the key wine producing countries, and Australia and New Zealand particularly had a superb year, in particular with the Bordeaux varietal grapes that grow there and which love the humidity these countries received plenty of. Also enjoying a fantastic year for weather were wineries across Argentina and Chile, with the Mendoza region claiming that 2012 will be one of their best vintages of the past decade. Similar claims are being made across the Chilean wine regions, where Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon had an especially good year. These two grape varietals also produced characterful wines on the coastal regions of South Africa this year.
Varietal: Gewurztraminer
Gewurztraminer is a highly interesting grape varietal, as the fruit is normally a dark blushed pink in color, often veering towards purple, yet it produces highly elegant white wines prized in its native central Europe and elsewhere around the world. The Gewurztraminer grapes contain quite a high amount of natural sugars, resulting in wines which are 'off-dry' and give the impression of sweetness, without being classed as actually sweet. What this grape is most noted for, however, is its remarkable flavors: highly perfumed, full of notes of rose water, Turkish delight, lychees and other aromatic fruits. Despite being notoriously difficult to grow, the Gewurztraminer grapes have such unique and fine qualities that many wineries continue to persevere with these fickle vines, and their popularity is expected to continue growing in the future.
Region: Trentino/Alto Adige
The northernmost Italian wine region of Trentino-Alto Adige has been producing unique and characterful wines for centuries, and is today widely considered to be the home of Italy's finest white wines, and several outstanding red wines, too. The region itself is quite unlike any other in Italy, as a large Germanic population and the proximity to other European countries has led to a range of interesting influences on the viticulture of Trentino-Alto Adige. The result is a range of wines made with native and imported grape varietals which are packed full of beautiful alpine flavors, and white wines which have all the crispness and dryness of the finest German wines. Trentino-Alto Adige is a region where traditional practices reign supreme, and it is heartening to see that most of the region's output still comes from relatively small, independent family run wineries, dedicated to the quality and uniqueness of their produce.
Country: Italy
It isn't difficult to understand why Italy is famed not just for the quality of its wines, but also for the vast variety and range of characteristics found in the wines there. The terrain of the country varies wildly, from the lush rolling green hills and valley of Tuscany, to the sun drenched rocky coasts of Sicily, the mountainous and alpine regions of the north, and the marshy lowlands of the east. Italy really does have a little bit of everything. Combine this huge range of landscapes with an almost perfect climate for grape cultivation, and you have a country seemingly designed for viticultural excellence. The results speak for themselves, and it is clear to see that wine has become an inseparable part of Italian culture as a result of its abundance and brilliance. Each village, city and region has a local wine perfectly matched with the cuisine of the area, and not an evening passes without the vast majority of Italian families raising a glass of locally sourced wine with pride and pleasure.