Nothing to do with the citrus fruit, orange wine or amber wine is made from white wine grapes. While white wine is fermented from white grape juice with little to no skin contact, orange wine/amber wine is fermented with the skins and seeds, and sometimes even with the stems. The color of a wine comes less from the flesh and juice than from the skin. For that reason, the skins of white grapes impart an orange to amber hue to the wine.
Besides imparting color, the seeds, skins, and stems provide tannins—a dry, grippy quality found in some red wines—to orange wine. When drinking orange/amber wine, expect the slight astringency of a red wine and the crispness of a white. Just like all other wines, orange/amber wines differ widely depending on the grape variety, terroir, and winemaking style. But as a general guide, they are medium- to full- bodied, with robust characteristics of nuts, tea, and dried fruit. By virtue of its bold flavors, medium to high acidity, low alcohol, and significant body, it can be paired perfectly with various dishes—from the spicy, to umami, and salty.
Today, orange wine / amber wine is being made in all parts of the world including Australia, Austria, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, France, Italy, Mexico, Slovenia, and the United States.
Reading Time: Updated on 27 November 2018: We were invited to the launch of the new vintages of Clai Sv. Jakov Malvazija and Brombonero Refošk. The wines were tasted over dinner at Dubravkin Put in Zagreb, Croatia. Nearly everyone was impressed with the new vintages. Giorgio Clai has been called the “Godfather of Istria.” He is …
Clai Brombonero & Clai Sv Jakov: Two Iconic Croatian Wines Read More »
Reading Time: 2017 marked the third year of our location-independent lifestyle and the second year of our wine career. It was a momentous year for us—in the span of 12 months, we authored and published our second and third wine book Sipping Santa Barbara and Cracking Croatian Wine, traveled to seven countries, and tasted over 2,000 wines. For professional …
Reading Time: (Cover photo from Batič Winery’s website.) We’ve spent significant time traveling and tasting through the Ex-Yugoslavian countries. For some reason, we had previously put little focus on Slovenia. After finishing our book Cracking Croatian Wine, we decided to make a week-long tasting trip through Goriška Brda, Kras, and Vipava Valley. Our tasting trip …
In November 2017, we took the train from Budapest, Hungary to Vienna, Austria to attend the Orange Wine Festival 2017. We are huge fans of orange wines (macerated white/skin-contact amber wines). It was our first time at this annual event, and it was everything we had hoped it would be. Orange Wine Festival 2017 The …
Reading Time: Wine brings people together, both from near and far. Charine met Tom Leitner on a natural wine Facebook group. After sharing a few messages, we realized that Tom shares a passion for Croatia and Croatian wine with us. He invited us to visit him in Austria and taste some of his favorite wines. …
Reading Time: After finishing our book Cracking Croatian Wine, we decided to make a week-long tasting trip through Goriška Brda, Kras, and Vipava Valley. Our tasting trip through Western Slovenia yielded many gems and exceeded our already lofty expectations. The standard of winemaking is outstanding and several producers are on par with some of the …
Marjan Simčič and Jakončič: Classically Styled Slovenian Wine Read More »
Reading Time: After finishing our book Cracking Croatian Wine, we decided to make a week-long tasting trip through Goriška Brda, Kras, and Vipava Valley. Our trip through Western Slovenia yielded many gems and exceeded our already lofty expectations. The quality of winemaking in Slovenia is outstanding and several producers are on par with some of …
Kabaj and Movia: Slovenian Wines with Big Personalities Read More »
Reading Time: We had a fantastic time at the (Facebook) #winelover’s See You In Serbia trip. Having spent nearly six months in the country, we consider ourselves rather familiar with Serbian wines. Because of that, we oscillated between “Let’s go. I’m excited!” and “Meh. I’m not sure if we will see, taste, or learn anything new.” In …
Reading Time: Hello! Welcome to As Drunk By Exotic Wine Travel, a weekly column where we feature wines that are worth noting. The reviews featured in this series may be written by either one or the both of us. The featured wines can be from obscure or well-known wine regions. We hope that these wine …
Reading Time: For a listing of articles and videos on Georgian wines and wine travel in Georgia, check out our page Uncorking the Caucasus. To purchase the Kindle or paperback copy of the book Uncorking the Caucasus: Wines from Turkey, Armenia, and Georgia, please head to this Amazon product page. Thanks to the first annual UNWTO Conference on Wine …
