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Identifying the grape Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Franc Chardonnay Chenin Blanc Gamay Gewurztraminer Merlot Muscat Nebbiolo Pinot Noir Resling Sauvignon Blanc Semillon Syrah Tempranillo Zinfandel Other Major Varieties

In German "Gewurz" means spicy, a clue to the character of this white-wine grape, which is at home in the vineyards on both sides of the Rhine in Alsace and south Germany and in northern Italy and Austria. Traminer is considered by some to be the same vine, though in parts of Germany a distinction is made.

Wine made from Gewurztraminer is one of the most recognizable of all. It has a pronounced fruitiness overlaid by aromatic, spicy notes. If made badly, it can be coarse; if the fruit is underripe it can be under-flavoured, but good Alsace and Baden examples have a mouth-filling intensity, through acidity is nearly always low, Gewürztraminer's taste has been likened to ripe grapefruit, lychees, or mangoes. It is often more recognizable by its aroma: hard to describe easy to recognize and remember.

Gewurztraminer has had limited success outside its central European home, partly due to its intolerance of warm conditions when its wine can turn out too flabby and blowzy. Some Gewurztraminer is grown in California and in New Zealand.