White grape variety
Gewürztraminer
The most unmistakably aromatic white variety: lychee, rose and ginger, with low acidity and often a touch of sweetness.
What is Gewürztraminer?
Gewürztraminer is instantly recognisable, and one of the very few wines that a beginner can reliably identify blind. The lychee and rose character comes largely from cis-rose oxide, a compound present at unusually high concentration.
Its weakness is the mirror of its strength: low acidity means it can feel heavy and flabby, and the perfume can become overwhelming over a whole glass.
Many Alsace examples carry noticeable residual sugar without saying so on the label, which is why a wine that smells sweet often also tastes it.
It is one of the few wines that genuinely handles aromatic Asian food, because its perfume can match strong spice rather than being flattened by it.
An aromatic, pink-skinned mutation of Savagnin (Traminer). The village of Tramin in Alto Adige gives it half its name; *Gewürz* means spice.
What it tastes like
This is the envelope across every expression of Gewürztraminer, not a description of one bottle. Wide ranges are the honest answer.
| Dimension | Typical | Range | Variation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sweetness | medium | Highly variable | |
| Acidity | low-medium | Some variation | |
| Alcohol | medium-plus | Some variation | |
| Body | medium-plus | Some variation | |
| Fruit intensity | high | Some variation | |
| Aromatic intensity | high | Some variation | |
| Oak influence | low | Consistent | |
| Savoury character | low-medium | Consistent | |
| Floral character | high | Some variation | |
| Herbal / green character | low | Consistent | |
| Spice | medium-plus | Some variation | |
| Earthy character | low | Consistent | |
| Perceived freshness | low-medium | Some variation | |
| Texture | medium-plus | Some variation |
Common flavours
On the nose
Wines made from it
The same grape in different places and different hands. These are where the wide ranges above resolve into something specific.
Off-dry white
Whites with a clear touch of sweetness balanced by acidity — the most useful category for spicy food.
France
Gewürztraminer
The most unmistakable white wine there is: lychee, rose and ginger, full-bodied, low in acid and frequently off-dry.
Late-harvest sweet wine
Wines from grapes left on the vine to over-ripen and shrivel, concentrating sugar without rot or frost.
Where it grows
- Alsace — France
- Trentino-Alto Adige — Italy
- Baden — Germany
If you like Gewürztraminer, try…
Every suggestion says why it is connected and what will be different.
Closest matches
What is most like this?
Viognier
Another full-bodied, low-acid, intensely aromatic white.
Apricot and honeysuckle rather than lychee and rose, and usually fully dry.
Gewürztraminer
Both are made from gewürztraminer, and the structural profile is close across body, acidity and tannin, both come from the same country.
Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains
Both are overtly grapey and floral aromatic varieties.
More straightforwardly grapey and usually lighter and fresher.
Similar but lighter
Something like this, but lighter?
Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains
Both are overtly grapey and floral aromatic varieties.
More straightforwardly grapey and usually lighter and fresher.
Torrontés
Argentina’s Torrontés shares the intensely floral, grapey aromatic profile.
Firmly dry on the palate despite the sweet perfume, and much lighter in body.
Muscadelle
The structural profile is close across body, acidity and tannin, and both come from the same country.
Expect it to be less spicy, and more neutral and subtle.
Similar but lower in alcohol
Something like this, but less alcoholic?
Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains
Both are overtly grapey and floral aromatic varieties.
More straightforwardly grapey and usually lighter and fresher.
Muscadelle
They occupy similar territory for weight and structure, and both come from the same country.
Expect it to be less spicy, and lighter.
Vidal
They occupy similar territory for weight and structure.
Expect it to be less floral, and fresher and more acidic.
Similar but fuller
Something like this, but richer?
Viognier
Another full-bodied, low-acid, intensely aromatic white.
Apricot and honeysuckle rather than lychee and rose, and usually fully dry.
Condrieu
The structural profile is close across body, acidity and tannin, and both come from the same country.
Expect it to be more oaky, and drier.
Pedro Ximénez
They occupy similar territory for weight and structure.
Expect it to be sweeter, and less floral.
What to eat with it
Ranked by WineHQ's pairing engine, which reasons from the structure of the dish.
Fillet steak
Works because the finished dish, not the raw ingredient, sets the target.
Asparagus
Works because bitterness in the dish and tannin in the wine accumulate rather than balance.
Trout
Works because low tannin avoids the metallic interaction with fish.
Turkey
Works because the finished dish, not the raw ingredient, sets the target.
Artichoke
Works because bitterness in the dish and tannin in the wine accumulate rather than balance.
Cauliflower and brassicas
Works because bitterness in the dish and tannin in the wine accumulate rather than balance.
What to avoid with it
Dishes the pairing engine scores badly, and the principle that explains why. A short list: most things are fine.
How to serve it
Temperature
10–13°C
50–55°F · Lightly chilled
About 45 minutes to an hour in the fridge from room temperature, or take it out of the fridge about an hour before serving.
Decanting
No need to decant
Nothing about this wine suggests it needs decanting. Light, aromatic and sparkling wines generally lose more than they gain.
Glass
Universal wine glass
A medium tulip-shaped glass handles almost everything well. If you own one set of glasses, this is the set to own — the difference between a good universal glass and a grape-specific one is far smaller than the difference between a good glass and a bad one.
Ageing
This grape is made into wines so different that ageing has no single answer.
Generally best within five years, where the lychee-and-rose aroma is most vivid and the low acidity is least noticeable. Alsace Grand Cru bottlings and Vendanges Tardives are a different matter and develop for a decade or more, the sugar and the concentration compensating for what the variety lacks in acid.
Family tree
Established by DNA analysis. Ampelography alone could not have found these relationships.
Parents
Compare
- Gewürztraminer vs Riesling — Both are Alsace aromatics — which suits spicy food better?
Sources
Sources consulted
- Vitis International Variety Catalogue (VIVC) — Julius Kühn-Institut, Institute for Grapevine Breeding Geilweilerhof
- Wine Grapes: A Complete Guide to 1,368 Vine Varieties — Robinson, Harding & Vouillamoz (Allen Lane, 2012)