TN: Gewurztraminer from Alto Adige!

More than a summer sipper so thought best to post a new thread! This wine has been flying off the shelf downtown despite a $27 Cdn price tag.

WTN: `10 Gewurztraminer Schreckbichl Colterenzio Alto Adige Italy.

From a well-run co-operative (www.colterenzio.it), good natural cork, 14% alc, lot# 01126A. I do not have too much experience with wines from this area, limited accessibility here up north I guess.
Co-op was founded in 1960 and has 284 members.

The color was a bright straw, no yellow for sure. Fresh mountain aromatics plus lycee, spice, perfume and rose garden..so I guess rather typical eh.
Initial entry told me off-dry, good acidity, elegant, not oily, serve not too chilled. Slight bitterness on the finish but food helped. "Very good mouthfeel' from across the table, apricot and spice with "a hint of nutmeg". Good note there Anastasia!
Needed some time to show its stuff but great gewurz for me. Wish BC guys could turn one out like this. One more bottle, no need to cellar too long.

Food match was great.....breast of chicken in a butter sauce (light curry), plus teriyaki pork tenderloin.

More than a summer sipper so thought best to post a new thread! This wine has been flying off the shelf downtown despite a $27 Cdn price tag.
WTN: `10 Gewurztraminer Schreckbichl Colterenzio Alto Adige Italy.
From a well-run co-operative (http://www.colterenzio.it), good natural cork, 14% alc, lot# 01126A. I do not have too much experience with wines from this area, limited accessibility here up north I guess.
Co-op was founded in 1960 and has 284 members.
The color was a bright straw, no yellow for sure. Fresh mountain aromatics plus lycee, spice, perfume and rose garden..so I guess rather typical eh.
Initial entry told me off-dry, good acidity, elegant, not oily, serve not too chilled. Slight bitterness on the finish but food helped. "Very good mouthfeel' from across the table, apricot and spice with "a hint of nutmeg". Good note there Anastasia!
Needed some time to show its stuff but great gewurz for me. Wish BC guys could turn one out like this. One more bottle, no need to cellar too long.
Food match was great.....breast of chicken in a butter sauce (light curry), plus teriyaki pork tenderloin.

Yup, Bob.....not had the '10 version of this yet, but have liked the previous ones quite a lot. Those from AbbaziaNovacella are also quite good.
I think, nowadays, the greatest GWTs in the world are coming from the AltoAdige. Not Alsace. They have an acidity and a dryness that are increasingly
rare in Alsace. And a minerality. And $27 is not an unfair price for a wine of that quality.
Traminer originated, is indigeneous, to the town of Tramin in the AltoAdige. The red-skinned, musque clone that is known as GWT, however, appeared to
evolve in Germany. Traminer's parents are not identifiable. Interestingly, Traminer is one of the parents of PinotNoir. Today's geek lesson. No charge.
Tom

Tom,

I asked my producer Andreas Widmann about the origin of Gewurztraminer, and he said that his understanding was that the grape came from south-eastern France, not the Alto Adige. It is named after the town of Tramin, though.

Tom,

I asked my producer Andreas Widmann about the origin of Gewurztraminer, and he said that his understanding was that the grape came from south-eastern France, not the Alto Adige. It is named after the town of Tramin, though.

On Traminer, WikPedia sez:

Proposed origins include ancient Egypt, Greece (coupled with a later introduction in Italy) or South Tyrol.

and on GWT:

Thus, Gewürztraminer is younger than Red Traminer, but is not known when the mutation took place.

Traminer is identical to Savignan Blanc of the Jura. And since many of those grapes originated up in the Jura/Savoie (a hotbed for fornicating amongst the grapes, apparently),
it may have been that Traminer made its way to SudTirol from there. Where the mutation to a red-skinned variety and, thence, to the musque form known as GWT is not clear.

If you read the WikPedia entries for both Traminer and GWT, it's all very confusing.
And, as a LosAlamos guy, I sometimes just make stuff up!!!
Tom