2008 Columbia Crest Two Vines Gewürztraminer

Tonight we had already eaten "Linner", so we decided to finish the night with crackers and cheese. And of course, after a very long and busy week at work, I really wanted a glass of wine to unwind. I opened a bottle of Gewurtzraminer, not knowing what it was (nor can I pronounce it). Noah tried to train me in German, but I suck at rolling r's and making u's with an O.





ANYWAY, I really enjoyed it, even if I still can't pronounce it. It basically tasted like champagne without the fizz, and maybe a tad bit less sugar. It was very sweet, and very acidic. It would have paired awesome with fresh fruit, like peaches or pears. It went to our head pretty quickly, and with two glasses I was buzzed and ready for bed. I have a bottle of this wine from Chateau too, and I can't wait to drink it and compare.





I did some research on this wine, and I found that the 2008 was a good year. It scored an 87, and was named the "Best Buy" for the year. Here's the description the winemaker has for it:





"Aromas of spice, lychee and rose petals are followed by flavors of grapefruit and white peach. A subtle sweetness and bright acidity marry seamlessly to create this balanced wine."





I gotta say, the grapefruit and peach makes sense, but I didn't smell roses, and I don't even know what a lychee is.

So here it is! Apparently a lychee is a soapberry. It grows on an evergreen tree in China, Thailand and the Phillipines. It has a hard outer rind, but is similar to the texture of a grape inside (but less juicy). It's apparently sweet and rich in vitamin C. It has a seed in the middle that is poisonous! They've recently started growing them in California, Hawaii, Texas and Florida, and can be bought in worldmarkets in a can. I'm intrigued enough to hunt this down and try them sometime. It might make them easier to identify in wine!