Twisted River Gewurztraminer

Winery: Twisted River

Varietal: Gewurztraminer

Gewurztraminer is renowned for being a particularly tricky grape varietal to grow and cultivate, but is one which plenty of wineries persevere with due to its unique properties and excellent flavors The vines themselves are highly robust, and can even be unruly when in the correct type of soil, but they cannot grow well in terroirs which contain chalk or other similar components. They are also extremely susceptible to a wide range of diseases and rot, and due to their early budding and fruiting, they cannot survive frost. However, despite these problems, in cooler climates and on the right terroir, the Gewurztraminer grape varietal produces wonderful results quite unlike any other vine. The pink grapes are packed full of elegant and sweet flavors, their relatively high sugar content offering a light sweetness alongside floral notes, perfumed and aromatic aromas, and a distinctive taste of lychees.

Region: Rheingau / Rheinhessen

Rheingau, on the valley sides of the beautiful Rhine river in Germany, has long since been home to many of the country's finest white wines. With a relatively small area of three thousand hectares under vine, Rheingau has always been a region more concerned with quality than quantity, and the wineries of the Rheingau region feature master wine makers with generations of experience and expertise in getting the very best flavors from their grapes. The grapes in question are almost always of the Riesling varietal, and ancient grape renowned for its dry and crisp character, and its ability to express the finest features of the terroir it grows on. In Rheingau, the terroir is nothing less than superb, featuring clear, crystal mountain waters, mineral rich soils and a mild, cool climate in which Riesling grapes flourish and thrive, producing wines of real distinction and beautiful flavours.

Country: Germany

Despite being known primarily for sweet and semi-sweet white wines, Germany actually produces a surprisingly large and varied range of wines, with many reaching an extremely high standard and being very well received on the world stage. The terrain across much of the southern parts of the country is extremely fertile, with mineral rich soils adding a wonderful edge to already excellent grapes, and thus resulting in delicious and highly elegant white and rosé wines. The climate in many parts of Germany also allows for some more unusual wine-making practices, with certain regions specializing in the highly aromatic and distinctive 'ice-wines' which are gaining popularity by those looking for something a little more intense and unusual. With these wines, the producers allow the grapes to freeze through the early frosts, resulting in a higher sugar content and a fantastic set of flavors and aromas in the finished product. Germany has long since favored quality over quantity, and a new enthusiasm for fine wine within the country is producing truly exciting results, using a blending of traditional and contemporary techniques.