McFadden 2013 Gewürztraminer (Potter Valley) — Acrid, sweaty, mean. Only a little bit of snappish apricot rind gives any indication that this is gewürztraminer. Poor. (11/16)
gewürztraminer
VTGWT
Trimbach 2001 Gewurztraminer “Vendanges Tardives” (Alsace) — From 375 ml. Weak-kneed, lacking the intensity, richness, spice, or sucrosity one truly expects from this wine. The fruit hasn’t developed at all, it has just faded. It’s sweet, no question, but it’s one-note; from Alsatian VT gewurztraminer, I expect a body slam. This is a gentle tickle. No one’s heart is in it. (5/16)
BettyLu
Dirler-Cadé 2001 Gewurztraminer Kessler (Alsace) — Dried roses, peach nectar, and cashew. Only a little dusting of pork. In other words, varietally true and aging quite well; I wouldn’t be surprised if this kept going for a while. (5/16)
Turbo boost
Dirler-Cadé 2012 Gewurztraminer Kitterlé (Alsace) — Rose petal jam, sugar crystals. Rich, quite sweet, and not showing much complexity. (5/16)
Bourg invasion
Blanck 2002 Altenbourg Gewurztraminer (Alsace) – Singing right now, and as this has been consistent over the last few bottles I’m thinking of drinking through mine at this stage…maybe leaving one or two orphans for latter-day experimentation. The fruit, always more peach than lychee, and with a significant contribution from cashew, has coppered in a very pretty way, and the minerality has started to reveal itself in ruddy glints and reflections. (8/12)
Zooty
Trimbach 2001 Gewurztraminer “Cuvée des Seigneurs de Ribeaupierre” (Alsace) – Crystalline and restrained. While it’s this latter quality that always marks this wine’s youth, it’s the former that emerges with age, which is not the case for the great majority of even Alsace’s best gewürztraminers, even the ones that age beautifully. As this one has…and it’s worth noting that it’s nowhere near done, either. Bright, light-infused peach and pear, still crisp (another sorely lacking quality of gewurztraminer from Alsace, and especially in these climate-changing times), and just an absolute joy to drink. No, it doesn’t have the lurid decadence of, say, a Weinbach at peak form. The Trimbach style, as damaged as it has been by the inevitabilities of ever-hotter vineyards, still reigns over this wine. While I’d hesitate to say it’s analytically dry, it performs as nearly so, and unlike richer gewurztraminer can still mingle, politely, with dishes that aren’t obvious gewürztraminer partners. (7/12)
Charmes-less
Kreydenweiss 2001 Kritt Gewurztraminer “Les Charmes” (Alsace) – Oxidized. (6/12)
Cheezbourger
Blanck 2002 Gewurztraminer Altenbourg (Alsace) – As bronzed as bottle as I’ve yet had (I continue to work through a two-case stash purchased on deep, deep discount), even tipping a bit towards one of the forms older gewurztraminer can take in which there’s a slightly oxidative honey aroma that’s dominant. Lingering lychee has gotten equally sticky, and the finish is short. Were the other bottles not so variable, I’d be concerned at the performance of this one, but supplementary evidence suggests this is a bit of an outlier, and better-performing corks are sustaining the wine’s progression in a more predictable way. (5/12)