June 2007 Wine Tasting Notes.
2005 Jekel Gewürztraminer, Monterey.
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This wine is a sparkling gold color in the glass. To the nose, it offers medium intensity warm spices and lychee as well as light intensity floral notes invoking memories of gardenias and star jasmine. In the mouth, medium intensity lychee and spice are accented by light intensity white peach and green apple. Light bodied and lightly sweet with nice acidity this wine also touts reserved alcohol. A medium length finish of apple follows. |
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12.0% Alcohol 1.32% Residual Sugar $12.99 Retail (from winery); 6,000 cases produced |
This perfumed, spicy, floral and opulent Gewürztraminer is true to variety and reveals a nice, crisp acidity. This wine is a great walk-around wine but will complement Asian (particularly Thai) dishes very well. Enjoy now but it should also do well over the next 3-4 years. BOTTOM LINE: Very good. Highly recommended. |
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| Supplemental/Repeat tasting: None. | ||
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Production | Grapes | Producer | Vineyard | Vintage
Made from 100% Gewürztraminer. Fermented in stainless steel in separate lots with no oak aging as is appropriate.
Despite its German-sounding name, Gewürztraminer originates from Italy. This popular grape makes approachable wines from light yellow, to deep gold, and even almost copper in color. It shows complex aromas and tends to be high in alcohol. Typical aromas and flavors are of exotic fruit such as lychee, peach and mango. It has floral notes of honeysuckle, gardenia as well as rose petals. It can also express various spices. The name is commonly translated to mean ‘spicy traminer’ but it would seem, by virtue of its character, a better translation is ‘perfumed Traminer’. While the best European Gewürztraminer comes from Alsace, Austria, Germany, and northern Italy, it does well in Australia, New Zealand, British Columbia, Oregon, Washington and the cooler microclimates in California: Mendocino, Monterey, Russian River Valley and Sonoma. (Read more).
Bill Jekel founded his eponymous winery in 1972. The winery is located near Greenfield, in the Arroyo Seco AVA. He released his first wines from the 1978 vintage. Several years ago, the winery and its vineyards were acquired by Brown-Forman who then closed the winery in 2005, moving red wine production to a larger, company-owned Paso Robles facility and white wine vinification to Hopland (at the Fetzer facility - also owned by Brown-Forman). As is the case with such large acquisitions, the winery was sold in 2006 as were the vineyards providing the fruit for Jekel wines. The plan, currently, is to continue sourcing Monterey fruit after the current arrangements for fruit from Gravelstone and Sanctuary Vineyards run out. New vineyard sources have not yet been identified.
Unspecified. To date, Jekel wines have reflected the terroir of northern Monterey County, specifically the Arroyo Seco AVA. The Salinas Valley which makes up much of the Monterey AVA, is a cool climate area benefiting from ocean proximity and powerful, sweeping early afternoon winds which cool the vines planted on sometimes rocky, nutrient-poor, alluvial soils.
The 2005 year saw an increase in crops over the preceding years. The year is being compared to the acclaimed 1997 vintage because of a very long and generally cool growing season without heat spikes. This long season resulted in extended hang times in even temperatures which gave the fruit good extraction but lower sugar levels. The slow ripening of the fruit is expected to make for elegance and balance in the wines of this vintage. Read More
Rating
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Color |
5 points |
(5 points max) |
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Nose |
4 points |
(5 points max) |
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Palate |
4 points |
(5 points max) |
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Finish |
3 points |
(5 points max) |
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Astringency/Minerality |
5 points |
(5 points max) |
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Acidity |
5 points |
(5 points max) |
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Alcohol |
5 points |
(5 points max) |
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Aging potential |
2 points |
(5 points max) |
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Overall quality |
9 points |
(10 points max) |
Cumulative Score: 92
Rating System & Scoring Criteria explained
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