Cave Vineyard’s “Cave Rock Off Dry” is 100% Traminette & 100% delicious!
Traminette grapes can either be made sweeter or semi-dry, which is the case of this one. Cave Rock Off Dry has beautiful floral notes and an ending note of orange blossom. Cave Rock Off Dry has won several awards in 2012: a bronze medal at the Indy International Wine Competition and a Medal of Excellence (equivalent to a Gold Medal) at the Jefferson Cup.
About:
Cave Vineyard is nestled in the southeastern rolling hills of Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri. The coolest thing about going to Cave Vineyards is the tasting room is located on top of a huge natural cave wine cellar. The winery has a paved trail that goes down to the cave, as well as a shuttle. There are tables in the cave where you can sit to enjoy your wine, biscotti and scenery. You can see photos of the cave here.
The first 7 acres of grapevines were planted in 2001 after Marty and Mary Jo Strussion decided it would be the perfect place to retire. An additional 7 acres were planted in 2002. The vineyard boasts 4 varieties of grapes: Chardonel, Traminette, Chambourcin and Cynthiana/Norton. The first harvest of these vines was in August 2003.
The Varietal:
Traminette is a cross of Gewürztraminer and the French-American varietal Johannes Seyve 23-416. This cross was made by Herb Barrett in 1965 while at the University of Illinois, in an attempt to produce a large-clustered table grape with Gewürztraminer flavor. Seeds were sent to Cornell University’s grape breeding program in Geneva, NY in 1968 but the varietal was not officially released until 1996. If you’ve never had a Traminette or Gewürztraminer, it is a similar to a Reisling.
Also, Jancis Robinson, who in her book American Wine: The Ultimate Companion to the Wines and Wineries of the United States says one of her most surprising finds was the quality of the Traminette, which is produced mostly in New York and the Midwest.
The Pour:
Cave Rock Off Dry is a pale yellow with faint legs:
The Sniff:
This Traminette has aromas of floral, peach, apricot, citrus and a bit of orange blossom.
The Taste:
This Traminette is best served chilled and wow, is it impressive. This white wine is a light semi-dry with flavors of citrus and ends with strong and long orange blossom finish. This is definitely a wine that we have been telling our friends they need to try.
On our visit last fall to Cave Vineyard we bought 4 bottles of Cave Rock Off Dry and wish we would have bought more! We definitely plan on stopping by to pick up more this year, but also wish we could pick up bottles in local St. Louis stores (hint, hint!).
Pairs with:
It’s fresh, light and a little fruity and would go great paired with spicy Chinese or Thai dishes. Plus, it can also be paired with ham, prosciutto, fruit-marinated pork and seafood. We had ours with shrimp scampi and it was delicious!
Grape: Traminette
Producer: Cave Vineyard
Price: $15.00
Alcohol: 11.5%
Produced and Bottled: Ste. Genevieve, Missouri
Website: www.cavevineyard.com
Glass used: Riedel glass
This month's wine book club pick is:
