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Evolution, 12th Edition

Evolution, 12th Edition Wine Details
Price: $15.00 per bottle

Description: Every new bottling has its own subtle and fresh personality. The 9 grapes tie together perfectly, creating a smooth, layered white wine that can hold its own or stand up to just about any food pairing you dare to serve it with. It is extraordinarily food-friendly, from light salads to the hottest fusion-style cuisine. Regarding the question we're most often asked: 'Were you trying to do this or did your leftovers happen to work well together?' We'll let the success of Evolution speak for itself.

Varietal Definition
Riesling:
On the sweeter end of the spectrum, some of the best dessert wines should give thanks to the Riesling varietal. Riesling is known for its complementary nature of combining balanced acidity with sugar. Rieslings are made dry to sweet, but it is the sweet style Riesling that brought about its popularity in the United States. With the rise of spicy sauces, marinades and dips to flavor our meal, Riesling plays a part in taking off the edge of the heat. Riesling is known for a number of signature characteristics: floral, citrus and pear. Riesling has peaked in California with 11,000 acres planted. Today, Monterey County’s cool-climate areas and its long growing season produce good amounts of character for the Riesling grape. Outside of
Muller-Thurgau:
Early ripening cross officially developed from Sylvaner and Riesling, but some authorities now contend was actually from two clonal varieties of Riesling. Produces a flowery, yet acidic white wine that bears a modest resemblance to the parent Riesling grapewine. Widely planted in Europe, New Zealand and some parts of the cooler Northern regions of N. America. Known as Rivaner in parts of Europe.
Chardonnay:
Chardonnay is by far the most widely planted grape crop in California and dominates California’s cooler, coastal, quality wine regions. The natural varietal ‘taste and smell’ of Chardonnay is surprisingly unfamiliar to many wine drinkers, as its true character is often guised with dominating winemaking signatures. Chardonnay’s rather subdued primary fruit characteristics lean toward the crisp fruitiness of apples, pears and lemon, but the variety’s full body is capable of supporting a host of complementary characteristics, such as oak, butter and vanilla. Regardless of what is the appropriate style for Chardonnay, the varietal continues to dominate vineyard plantings in every corner of the world. Close attention to clonal selection has made this broad geographic and climactic range of Chardonnay viable in thoughtful viticultural hands.
Gewürztraminer:
Cultivated for over a thousand years, this white-wine grape (sometimes referred to simply as Traminer) is thought to have originated in the village of Tramin (or Temeno) in Italy’s Alto Adige region. Gewürztraminer grapes are planted in Alsace, a French region between Germany and France that specializes in excellent dry Gerwürztraminer wines. They’re also cultivated in Germany, Austria, Hungary, Rumania, Czechoslovakia, and Ukraine. Because they perform better in cooler climates, Gewürztraminer grapes have not done well in many of California’s warmer growing regions. However, they thrive in cooler California areas such as Carneros, Anderson Valley, and Monterey County, as well as in parts of Oregon and Washington. The German word ‘gewürz’ means ‘spiced,’ and these wines are known for their crisp, spicy attributes. They’re highly fragrant, with flavor characteristics of litchis, roses, and spices such as cloves and nutmeg. Gewürztraminer wines are available in varying degrees of sweetness -- dry, medium-sweet, and late harvest. Because of the grape’s pinkish (sometimes yellow) pigment, Gewürztraminer wines are some of the more deeply colored of the whites, many have gold or peach tones. The distinctive color and aroma of these wines make them easily recognizable by those familiar with this varietal wine.
Pinot Blanc:
White grape popular for the dry white wines it produces. Increasingly grown in California, the Northwest, Northeast, Canada.
Muscat Canelli:
Known by many names, this grape’s official French name is Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains, which translates as ‘Muscat with small berries’. In California, the name Muscat Canelli is common, derived from Moscato di Canelli, a name used in Italy. In the northern hemisphere this late-ripening variety is mainly used to make semi-sweet and sweet dessert wines, or as a table grape. Grown in many countries, including Austria and Germany (Muskateller), Hungary (Muscat Lunel), and France (Muscat Frontignan), it may be the oldest known grape, confirmed as growing around the Mediterranean for centuries. However, it should not be confused with Muscat of Alexandria, a grape with a similar ancient history in the same region.
Sémillon:
A thin skinned grape producing wines of high extract and flavour but soft acidity. In France it combines with Sauvignon Blanc to make the white wines of Bordeaux, most notably the sweet dessert wines of Sauternes and Barsac. Its thin skin leaves it susceptible to the fungus botrytis* the much sought after 'noble rot' in these sweet wine regions. As a varietal it has fared best in Australia, notably the Hunter Valley, where it produces well-rounded wines with lots of tropical fruits and honeyed tones. Here too it is blended with Chardonnay and oak aged to give an added dimension.
Pinot Grigio/Gris:
Pinkish-white variety producing a very crisp white wine. Grown in Oregon, the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, and more and more in California, it shows promise for other cool climates. Also known as Tokay d'Alsace in France, Rulander in Germany, and Pinot Grigio in Italy.
Sylvaner:
Widely grown in the Alsace region of France, Germany and Central Europe. Suited to temperate zones, the vine is high-yielding and the grape produces an "easy" white wine with lightly spicy, floral flavors and mild intensity. Once very popular in California, it seems to have fallen victim to changing fashion in recent years and been replaced by Johannisberg Riesling in current taste. It has also been crossed with the latter grape to yield the Muller-Thurgau hybrid grape and another hybrid version called Scheurebe as well as several other crossings of a similar nature.


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