What is Orange wine?

What is Orange Wine?

 Orange wine is produced by allowing white wine grapes to macerate and ferment on their skins for a period of time at the beginning of the winemaking process. While conventional white wine production involves crushing the grapes and quickly straining the juice off the skins and into the fermentation vessel, orange wine has the juice stay in contact with the skins for days or even months. Just as with red wine grapes, these skins contain color pigment, phenols and tannins, all of which give an orange wine its unique tint, flavor and texture.

 This wine making technique may seem new and trendy, but it is, in fact, an ancient style of wine production dating back thousands of years to Georgia in Eastern Europe, where they are known as Amber wines. They have been produced for hundreds of years in areas of Slovenia, Croatia, and Italy. The method remained common in many parts of Europe up until the mid 20th century when traditional white wines began to dominate the local and international market. British wine importer David Harvey is credited with coining the modern day term “Orange Wine” in 2004 to identify this unique, old-world style of wine. Today, worldwide, Orange wines are once again gaining the attention they deserve.

 Never experienced an orange wine?  They often start with a robust nose containing aromas of nuts, citrus rind, and beeswax moving on to a pallet which is usually dry, with flavors ranging from light and tangy notes of grapefruit and blood orange to fuller notes of sourdough and tropical fruit. Most tend to have a mouthwatering, semi tannic finish.

 Here at Stockwell Cellars, our Orange Wines are made with Pinot Grigio grapes and carry the Italian term “Ramato” (Italian for “copper”) which refers back to a style of wine making from the Fruili-Venezia-Giulia region of Italy. For our Ramato, we allow the grape juice to sit with the skins from 30-60 days, then age it in stainless steel until bottling. The result is a luscious blend of floral notes and citrus tang that is a must try for any wine enthusiast.

We will be releasing our 2019 Pinot Grigio Ramato Orange Wine on Sunday, August 1, 2021 in conduction with our monthly oyster pop-up. Because after all, orange wine and oysters are the perfect pairing!

***2021 Chardonnay Orange Wine will be making its debut in the spring of 2022***