We think that because something is new to us, it’s new to everyone else. When orange wine became ubiquitous out of lockdown, many discovered the wine style for the first time and assumed it to be a new development. But orange wine is the most ancient method of making wine: far from a current fad, wine has been made on the skins for thousands and thousands of years.
Naturally – no pun intended – some orange wines are better than others, and the best examples are juicy like a white, tannic like a red, intricately layered and therefore an excellent match to equally complex foods that lean aromatic or spiced.
This is perhaps why they have their own section at Fitzrovia’s Rovi, where Ottolenghi’s classic vision for veggie-based foods packed with layered spice demand equally exciting wines. It was a real treat to see Zainab Majerikova recently announced as the new head of wine at Ottolenghi, not least because she is a fabulous and knowledgeable person who is well-loved in the industry, but also because I knew that she would be bringing along some of the wines that she imports as one half of importer and distributor Basket Press Wines.
Basket Press – which she runs with her partner, Jiri Majerik – favours low-intervention and expressive wines and ciders from Central Europe. There were several to taste through at my last visit (Majerikova will be hosting a summer wine tasting series at both Rovi and [sister restaurant] Nopi over the coming months, if you’d like her to personally guide you through her wines), but the standout for me was the Herr Gewurtz, a £13 glass of orange wine from Czech project Krasna Hora.
The wine is 100 per cent gewürtztraminer, a variety that brings intense perfume. Its tell in a blind tasting is the signature aroma of dried rose petals. Images of turkish delight and black tea are conjured by the nose, and gentle tannins pull at the palate, making this a versatile wine for Rovi’s varied menu. Orange wine is here to stay.
The Drink is a regular column from writer Hannah Crosbie about what she’s drinking in London right now.
