Delatite 2020 Dead Man's Hill Gewurtztraminer

I love to stumble on little moments of joy. Heading into a high street Thai place with a BYO capacity, I popped into an independent wine store on the other side of the next wine bar. And there before me was a Delatite Dead Man's Hill Gewurtz and I needed to look no further. Gewurtz pairs so well with spicy Thai food, and the organic and biodynamic principles engaged by the Delatite team meant this would be all nuance and joy.

I have had a few other Delatite wines and know them well, so I opened this with some high expectation. Made in Victoria's high country, this is all about funky sweetness alongside some sharp acidity and a lovely, textural balance.

The nose is heavy with dried rose petals, lychee, Turkish delight, spicy poached pear and there is a hint of those old school banana lollies I had as a kid. It has a sweet edge but it's not dominant at all. Then, a lovely clean acid crunch envelops the mouth, clings to the inside of the cheeks, with underlying tones of cardamom and dry spice, evening out to a long, and very pleasurable finish. It has an opulent kind of richness, with lingering suggestions of dried apricot and quince.

Bone dry to the last, this doesn't need to be super cold. In fact, get it out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before you drink it, and look for the natural funkiness a good Gewurtz offers. There's loads to love in this wine and I look forward to more of it as the vintages are released.

David Ritchie and Andy Browning are always to try making new, interesting wines and since the 2016 vintage three new wines have been released. They continue with their minimal intervention in the winery by allowing natural or ‘wild’ yeast ferments (no commercial yeasts are added), no artificial fining agents and most of the red wines are bottled with minimal or no filtration. This is old school winemaking but in a modern winery with modern equipment and very good knowledge of the science of winemaking……the best of both worlds.

RRP $30

https://www.delatitewinery.com.au/

VIC |2020 |Mansfield | 14%