Wine Region: Alto Adige

(2024) Great to have a chance to taste this eight-year-old vintage of Cantina Tramin's Nussbaumer, made from selected vineyard parcels of Gewürztraminer. It is made from vines that are 40 years old, and aged on the lees in stainless steel. Intense leafy and floral notes almost like geranium leaf, with some Nivea cream and lychee. Luscious, weighty and off-dry, it fills the mouth with creamy texture, spice and tropical fruit married to a pithy, bracing acid note in the finish. Note price and stockist is for the most recent vintage at time of review.

(2024) From vines at 400 to 600 metres altitude, this was partly fermented in large oak casks, and partly in smaller barrels. It was matured in large French oak casks. Surprisingly aromatic, a sheen of almond over nectarine and lime, a smoke, cracked river stone background. Just off-dry, this is very much more Alsace Pinot Gris than Pinot Grigio, rich and full, luscious mango to nectarine, with a rasp of grapefruit and lemon acidity to give balance and definition.

(2024) From the 'classic' range, vineyards on calcareous clay and gravelly soils lie at an altitude between 250 and 400 metres. It's a deliciously dry and relatively full-bodied wine, honeysuckle-touched aromas of citrus and poached pear combine. In the mouth it is textured and rounded, more pear and a hint of lush peachiness, but then a strict and quite mineral acid drives through to give freshness and real sippability.

(2024) From vineyards at 350 to 550 metres above sea level. After a short maceration, fermentation in small stainless steel tanks and then ageing with lees stirring for a total maturation period of 15 months. Beautifully clear, classic and inviting Gewurz aromas showing lychee, herbs and Turkish delight. The palate is so oily and textured, and the spicy flavours definitely flit with sweetness, a rich and rolling palate that's full of interest, the slightly phenolic grip of skin contact adds a touch of abrasive grip to the opulent flavours. Very lovely.

(2024) This beautifully pitched high altitude Chardonnay carries its oak (11 months in Bordeaux barriques) more lightly than the previously tasted 2017, and is all the better for it. In fact it is both elegant and generous on the nose, nutty almond notes merging with custard apple and lime rind. In the mouth it is concentrated, intense, with a rich and mouth-filling texture, but crucially it is juicy, fresh and mouthwatering too, that orange and lime, more lush take on citrus, powers through against that creamy and nutty background.

(2024) I haven't tasted the Stoan blend since the 2018 vintage, but this 2022 is just as impressive. It's a blend of more than 60% Chardonnay, with Sauvignon Blanc, Gewürztraminer and Pinot Bianco. It has such a charming nose, of chalk and talcum, Spring flowers and elegant, juicy citrus and pineapple. As with many of the Cantina's wines, it has weight and texture but is somehow also nimble and pretty, the palate filled with fruit but also a spice and grip of acid and a hint of extract that adds a textural edge. Delightful.

(2024) From my cellar, and 19 years old when drunk, this was fabulous. The colour has a broad rim of amber, and the nose is suffused with truffle and game, dried leaves on a forest floor, with a fine red fruit weight and hints of vanilla beneath. In the mouth it is resolved and smooth, a chocolate richness to the tannins and the acid gently propelling the autumnal berries of the mid-palate. Just a lovely wine. Note that price and stockist given are for the current vintage at time of this 2024 review.

(2021) This prmium Gewürztraminer cuvée comes from vineyards at 350- to 550-metres altitude, grown on calcareous soils. The vines are up to 40 years old, and the wine is aged in stainless steel on the lees. With 15% alcohol declared on the label it is a powerful, concentrated and intense expression of Gewürztraminer, pouring a light gold colour with soaring aromas of lychee, old fragrant roses and Turkish delight. In the mouth the texure is slippery and rich, and the sheer weight and concentration of fruit along with a little residual sugar could be overbearing, but thankfully the acid base of the wine is equally powerful. That all adds up to a big, dominant style of white wine that I think might work best with food - spicy Sechuan or Thai cuisine perhaps.

(2021) An an alpine Chardonnay, weighing in with 14% alcohol by volume, there's a fairly obvious oak influence here, giving a wisp of Jack Daniels on the nose, but the balance of white fruit and freshness from these vineyards at 500– to 550-metres altitude is good. It was fermented and aged for 11 months in Bordeaux barriques, but then a further 22 months ageing on the lees in steel. On the palate there's interplay between juicy orange and peach, quite a full texture, with a fat waxy lemon quality, and again, good balancing acidity in a concentrated, grippy, serious style.

(2021) Most assuredly a Pinot Grigio that marches to a very different beat from your 'average' northern Italian example. This is a powerful, concentrated wine of texture, opening with white fruit, melon rind and peppery aromas, and striking the palate with real authority. I guess 14% ABV helps that, as does some oak ageing, but really it does show that skinny, leesy grip on the palate and the concentrated fruit that is much more 'Gris' than 'Grigio', with a broad chewy texture of fruit, extract and a even a touch of tannin. Besides that, however, the freshness and acid balance is excellent making this a gastronomic treat too. The best Pinot Grigio from Italy that I have tasted? Possibly, yes.