The Wonderful World of Orange Wine

Orange wine (as a production technique, not the misnomer term) is ancient. The origins date back to a time when grapes, regardless of pigment, were vinified following the same methodology once plucked from the vine. In the thousands of years since, unsurprisingly, winemaking innovations have come leaps and bounds, essentially eradicating skin-fermented white wines from our collective vinous memories, excepting few traditional strongholds. In the past several decades, amidst a rise in interest of reviving dormant styles, these wines (renamed for the sake of brevity as ‘Orange Wines’) have become more diverse than ever.

To highlight the polarity of styles underneath the Orange Wine banner, we have pulled together wines from Georgia, Friuli, Sicily, Chile and Germany; from the structured and brooding to the aromatic and refreshing. This class will follow the general timeline of the style from its’ spiritual roots to more recent memory, where regions without the tradition of fermenting white grapes on the skins are pushing Orange wines forward in different directions.

Included in the line up of wines for November 17:
2016 Tchotiashvili Rcheuli Qvevri Rkatsiteli
2015 Skerlj Vitovkska
2016 Dario Prinčic Jakot
2018 Marco de Bartoli Integer Grillo
2020 Serragghia Bianco Zibibbo
2019 Marto Weiss
2018 De Martino Viejas Tinajas Muscat

This is intended to be an exploration into the varying styles of Orange wine and less of a deep dive into any one region. Though a general understanding of how wine is made is useful, it is not necessary for this class.