Wine of the week: Fetzer 2020 California Gewürztraminer

When winemakers sheltered in place in 2020 like the rest of us, many took it as an opportunity to spend time in the wine cellar. Fetzer winemaker Margaret Leonardi was one, and our wine of the week is a bottling she crafted, the Fetzer 2020 California Gewürztraminer at $9.

“There wasn’t much else to do apart from being devoted to the wines,” Leonardi said. “We were all around the winery much more often, and I spent a lot of time with the fruit. As a result, I was able to be especially particular and precise with things, so this wine simply got more attention, more love.”

The Fetzer gewürztraminer has aromas and flavors of apricot, peach, rose petal and honeysuckle. While fruity, this wine has bright acid to keep its touch of sweetness in check, and it finishes crisp. It overdelivers at this price point.

Other tasty exotic whites include: Count Karolyi, 2019 Hungary Grüner Veltliner, 12%, $12; Dutton-Goldfield, 2019 Chileno Valley Vineyard (Petaluma Gap-Marin County) Riesling, 12.3%, $30; Handley, 2019 Estate Vineyard, Anderson Valley Gewürztraminer, 13.2%, $26; and McManis, 2020 Estate Grown Certified Sustainable Pinot Grigio, 11.5%, $10.

What most people overlook about gewürztraminer, Leonardi said, is its food pairing possibilities.

“Our gewürztraminer is a wine of contrasts,” she said. “It has sweetness along with nice elevated acidity, or tartness, from cool‐climate winegrowing. It has hallmark spiciness alongside an intriguing floral quality. These qualities make it a perfect starting point to a meal with contrasting flavors. It’s simply great with Asian food, especially Chinese, as a replacement for an Asian lager beer at the table.”

Leonardi, 34, joined Fetzer in 2015 and was named head winemaker of Fetzer this year. She’s the first woman to lead winemaking for Fetzer in the brand’s 50-plus year history. A graduate of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, she earned a degree in agriculture business, with a minor in marketing, wine and viticulture in 2009.

The winemaker said being meticulous serves gewürztraminer well because it’s a varietal that benefits from being pampered.

“It’s a wine that needs to be checked in on, tasted, obsessed over while it is being made, and I do a pretty good job at that,” Leonardi said. “I taste every lot every day and arrest fermentation at a very precise level of alcohol and residual sugar. Each lot is different. It’s important to keep in mind the big picture, the blend as a whole, while keeping abreast of what’s occurring in every single lot. It’s key to be really organized and a planner. It’s the best way to make this wine.”

The winemaker said a silver lining of the pandemic has been the adoption of technology allowing for greater automation and real-time collaboration.

“The intersection of technology and teamwork has been nice to see and it will allow us to continue to work efficiently together across the winery as we look ahead. It’s been great to all have eyes on the same data at the same time.

Wine writer Peg Melnik can be reached at peg.melnik@pressdemocrat.com or 707-521-5310.