Orange Wine in Stockport
Orange wine is white wine made like red. The juice stays on the grape skins for days or months, taking on colour, texture and a savoury edge you won't find anywhere else. It's the style that sent half our regulars down the natural wine rabbit hole. Ours run from gently amber and floral to full-on tannic and wild. New to it? Tell us at the stall and we'll match you to a starter bottle.
Gols, Neusiedlersee, Austria
■ Traminer (Gewürztraminer)
Skin-contact Traminer from Judith Beck's biodynamic estate at Gols, on the eastern shore of the Neusiedlersee. Around eight to ten days on the skins and a rest in used barriques turn the grape's natural exuberance — rose petal, orange peel and warm spice — into something drier and gently grippy. Certified biodynamic (respekt-BIODYN). A brilliant match for spiced and aromatic food.
Georgia
■ Rkatsiteli, Kisi, Mtsvane (native Georgian varieties)
A traditional Georgian amber wine from Kakheti, blending Rkatsiteli, Kisi and Mtsvane fermented in qvevri clay vessels. Dried apricot, citrus blossom and toasted almond with soft, structured tannins.
Sarica-Niculițel, Romania
Romanian orange wine from Fetească Regală, six months on the skins and bottled unfiltered. Amber-gold, with apricot, peach, bergamot and citrus, a gentle grip of tannin and a long finish.
Stellenbosch, South Africa
■ Pinot Gris (skin contact)
Amber-gold with a copper blush after a few days on skins: ripe peach, grapefruit and a touch of green apple, with a light savoury grip of tannin and a clean, dry finish. Low-intervention winemaking, and gentle enough to convert an orange-wine sceptic. Vegan.
Paarl, South Africa
■ Semillon (skin macerated)
Burnished amber with a creamy texture: ripe peach and apricot, citrus pith and a whisper of honey blossom, framed by fine tannin from daily punch-downs and bright acidity. Wild-fermented on skins and aged in concrete egg. Small-batch and low-sulphur.
Rioja Alavesa, Spain
■ Viura, Garnacha Blanca, Malvasía (skin contact)
Amber-gold skin-contact white from old-vine Viura, Garnacha and Garnacha Blanca on Rioja Alavesa's white limestone. Two months fermenting whole-cluster on skins, then a year in French foudre, gives a grippy, waxy texture with dried apricot, orange peel and honeyed spice. Certified organic and biodynamic.
Manchuela DO, Spain
■ Macabeo
Skin-contact Macabeo from D.O. Manchuela, given a full two months on its skins. Stone fruit and white blossom, with a soft, textured palate and a mineral finish. Vegan and low-intervention, and made in tiny quantities — around 6,500 bottles in 2022.
Kamptal, Austria
■ Grüner Veltliner, Neuburger
Schlehe means 'sloe', so expect wild fruit character with the added texture of skin maceration. White pepper, citrus peel and a savoury, tannic edge from the skins. Kamptal orange wine at its most approachable.
Barr, France
■ Muscat, Gewurztraminer, Riesling
An amber, skin-macerated Alsace blend of Muscat, Gewurztraminer and Riesling, aged on its fine lees and bottled with nothing added — no sulphites, unfined, unfiltered. Very ripe on the nose, all stewed peach, fresh Muscat grape and exotic fruit, but fresh and beautifully balanced on the palate. Stoeffler have farmed organically since 2000. Lovely with strong cheeses or anything spiced.