This white wine grape is grown predominantly where the climate leans to the cooler side and the flavors have an opportunity to concentrate. Gewurztraminer can be made in dry or sweet varieties and are generally best if enjoyed when young. The flavors and aromas are often described as honey, lychee, pumpkin spice, cinnamon, apricot, pear and rose. The prefix "Gewurz" actually means spice. These wines tend to pair well with Asian dishes or zesty-flavored fare like smoky, grilled chicken legs and wings. The French Alsace region where the grape grows has a rather robust, spicy cuisine that "Gewurz" pairs with quite well. Well seasoned pork sausages and smoked, cured hams and turkey are delicious with this wine. It is the best-known Alsace wine.

There are some nice pictures throughout the site. I like the photos on the "art of wine making" page and the picture of the winery on the "winery" page.

Just a few miles north of the Napa Valley and into Sonoma County, in the heart of the Alexander Valley is Mosaic Vineyards & winery and de Lorimier Estate.

Here you will find award winning wines for the most discerning aficionado that will stimulate your senses, and tantalize your taste-buds. Hand crafted, small lot vineyard designate Cabernet, Zinfandel, Malbec, Sangiovese, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Merlot and Meritage wines that are sure to please.

Mosaic Vineyards & Winery became a reality for principals, Tom Fuchs and Bill McCardell just a couple of years ago, and already their impact is resonating in the premium wine community. After extensive research and exploring the entire west coast of the United States, it was here in the heart of the Alexander Valley in Sonoma County that they discovered the perfect place to launch their dream and create Mosaic Vineyards. Often referred to as "California's Bordeaux", the local landscape is a veritable Mosaic of soil types and microclimates growing some of the finest "Vitis Vinifera" in the world, and making this a winemaker's dream location for producing world class wines. Tom Fuchs, with over 30 years of experience in the wine industry has brought his expertise to the winery marketing program and the structuring of operations, and has a winemaking team with more than 40 cumulative years of expertise in the cellar to create what are arguably some of the finest wines available today. The winery is located at 2001 Highway 128 just southeast of Geyserville, 12 minutes north of Healdsburg, and about 70 miles north on highway 101 from San Francisco. For more information you can call 1 (800) 546-7718.

2004 MOSAIC Chardonnay
86 points - Wine Enthusiast
Silver Medal - 2007 Los Angeles County Fair
Silver Medal - 2007 San Francisco Chronicle competition
Silver Medal - 2006 Sonoma County Harvest Fair
Bronze Medal - 2006 Orange County Fair
Bronze Medal - 2006 The San Francisco Chronicle competition

• 2 lbs ground turkey
• 1 large sweet onion
• 3 large carrots
• 1 lb button mushrooms
• 3/4 cup sweet cream sherry
• 1/8 cup worcestershire sauce
• 2 cups brown gravy
• 4 lbs yukon gold potatoes
• 4 tbsp sweet cream butter
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 8 oz cream cheese
• salt & pepper to taste
• 2 tbsp canola oil
• 1 tsp paprika

You will need 1 extra large sautee pan, 1 large stock pot, and a 9?x13? casserole dish.

Start by scrubbing and dicing the yukon gold potatoes. In the large stock pot, cover with water and add 2 teaspoons (to taste) of salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, and boil until tender. When done, strain off the remaining water, add the butter, buttermilk, and cream cheese, and mash thoroughly. If needed add salt to taste. Cover and set aside.

Peel & dice the onion, and scrub and coarsely grate the carrots. In a large sautee pan over medium high heat place the canola oil, and sautee the onion and carrots until the onions become translucent. De-stem the mushrooms, and slice them adding to the sautee pan, and cook until soft. Add the ground turkey, and continue to sautee, breaking up the turkey until fully cooked and crumbled. Stir in 1/2 a cup of the sherry, add 1/8 cup of worcestershire sauce, and add 1 cup of brown gravy to the mix. Reduce to a simmer until all ingredients are thoroughly combined. Remove from heat.

Place the turkey sautee in the bottom of the casserole dish. Carefully place a liberal layer of mashed potatoes on top of the meat until completely covered.

Sprinkle lightly with paprika. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees, and bake the dish for approximately 30-40 minutes uncovered until top starts to brown slightly.

Add remaining 1/4 cup of sherry to 1 cup of Brown gravy mix and heat until well blended and hot. Serve with portions of the harvesters” pie. A fabulous match with either Chardonnay or Merlot.

Serves 6-8 people

Original Recipe by Julius Orth from Mosaic Winery at http://www.mosaicvineyards.com

Alsace, unlike the other French Regions, abound in both French and German influences. The region is situated in mid-eastern to north-eastern France. It is bound to the north by Germany and to the east by the Rhine River (with Germany across the Rhine), to the south by Switzerland and the region of Franche-Comté and to the west by the beautiful Vosges mountains and the region of Lorraine.

Much of Alsace is found on a fertile alluvial plain, between the Rhine River and the Vosges mountains in the west. The lower area, that rises from the Rhine, is checkered with vineyards. The higher slopes are forested and sprinkled with monasteries and old castles.

Alsace is unique, among French regions, due to its dual Franco-Germanic cultures. The majority of the population speaks French with a decided German accent, the cuisine is an able blend of French and German cooking, many of the towns of the region have German names and the village architecture delights in a pronounced Germanic influence.

One can stay in B&Bs, on the slopes of the Haut-Rhin the local cuisine and people. Or, one can visit Strasbourg, the headquarters of the European Parliament, with all of its wonderful architecture, diverse culture and international cuisine. But in spite of its international flavor, Strasbourg is a somewhat laid back city compared to large cities in general.

It has become famous all over the world for the exceptional natural beauty of its scenery, for how easy it is to follow, and for the way it makes the visitor feel close to the region and its winegrowers.

The Alsace Wine Route winds its way from north to south, for more than 170 kilometres, along the eastern foothills of the Vosges. This delightful itinerary runs across a succession of undulating hills, through pretty villages with narrow streets of flower-decked, half-timbered houses, clustered around their church steeple.

Visitors can easily explore the heart of the vineyards, along numerous vineyard paths leading to the crest of each slope, where signs explain the work of the winegrower and the diversity of the grape varieties.

They are welcomed into winstubs and tasting cellars to instantly discover the traditional appeal of the vine and the wine.

Production in Alsace is 165 million bottles, +90% of Alsace wines are white.

White wines are typically the most difficult wines for a winemaker to make. The majority are quickly pressed and the juice is fermented away from their skins, to maintain their freshness. On the surface this seems easy to do, but there is no room for error. Once the fermentation is finished, the wine is held for 4 to 6 months before bottling and then released.

Red wines develop layers of flavors with skin contact during fermentation and extended barrel aging, sometimes as much as 15 to 20 months of aging. These flavor additions cover over many small winemaking errors that might occur during the wine's fermentation.

White wines are extremely versatile when it comes to food. Forward citrus fruit flavors of light-style Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc make it easy to match with fresh fish and seafood menus. The natural crispness of Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc make refreshing flavor contrasts with spicy cuisine, whether it's Oriental, Mexican or our own Southern BBQ.

Distinctly flavored wines, such as Gewurztraminer, Muscat and Malvasia Bianca have an amazing affinity for a number of creamy-style cheeses. Their fruit flavors are like biting into fresh peaches, plums, apricots and mangoes - and who doesn't like fresh fruit with a nice, ripe French Brie or Camembert.

Sparkling wine, which uses the juice from red grapes, is versatile with oysters and caviar - it's the perfect brunch wine!