The Story
The Fetzer Shaly Loam Gewurztraminer 2018 is sourced from vineyards in the Monterey AVA of California’s Central Coast AVA. Shaly Loam is a type of soil associated with farmland since we are not told exactly where the vineyards are mentioning the type of soil without a vineyard location is being very specific and vague at the same time.
Fetzer is an interesting wine company, they were started 52 years ago in Mendocino and is now owned by a wine company from Chile. But rather than simply being a brand name they are the North American headquarters and have an independent identity.
Their wines are sustainably produced, they have 100s of acres of organic vineyards along with several hundred acres biodynamic vineyards. Biodynamic wines go organic vineyards one better and have wine and vineyard practices tied to the phases of the moon. They are also a certified B Company (along with companies like Ben and Jerry’s) that balance profits with purpose and are currently trying to address racism on a corporate level.
Gewurztraminer is a grape associated with the Alsace region in France, along with Austria, and Germany. It is usually a moderately sweet wine but has enough acidity to balance its sweet nature. Here is a review of another Monterey Gewurztraminer that may be similar to the Fetzer.
This is a wine that is widely available (I think I found it for 6 bucks and I think I saw it at Trader Joe’s) and is very well reviewed for an inexpensive wine. The Fetzer was fermented in stainless steel vats and a portion of this Gewurztraminer was aged “on lees”. The alcohol content is a mild 12%.
Fetzer Shaly Loam Gewurztraminer 2018 Tasting Notes
The color is a pale butter yellow. The nose is sweet and interesting, melon, hard lemon cough drops, honey, peach, tangerine, and tart apple. The nose is not shy on this one. This wine has a firm mouthfeel and while it is sweet, it is nectar sweet, like a ripe juicy plum and not candy sweet.
It tastes of a stew of navel orange, lemon/lime, orange blossom honey, followed by a little Altoid’s spice. The mid-palate adds peach, apricot, and tart apple. This wine packs a great deal of flavor, the acidity does not get in the way of the flavor profile but does not the edge off of all the sweet flavors on display.
The Summary
- The Fetzer Shaly Loam Gewurztraminer 2018 is a very solid take on kind of sort of sweet wine. I am not generally a fan of sweet wine, I understand it had its place, but I can skip wine at the dessert course. But I like Fetzer Shaly Loam, this wine tastes great.
