A tasting of organic & natural white & orange wines

Saturday 26th August • 5:30pm • The Greenhouse Trust Courtyard, Norwich • £35

Orange wines are creeping into the consciousness of more and more wine drinkers. Also known as amber or skin-contact white wines, orange wines are made by macerating white grape varieties, extracting colour and tannin from the grape skins.

Though the character and the colour of the finished wines depends on the grape varieties used and the length of the maceration (it can be one day, it can be one month), orange wines have a distinct character.

You can examine the effect of maceration yourself with a couple of comparative tastings at our next event. We were blessed with a dry and sunny evening last time out in the calm and quiet of the Greenhouse Trust courtyard, but we can duck under cover if we encounter some rain. Hannah Bingley, founder and operator of Freckles of Hannah, has created another menu of impossibly intricate seasonal canapés; you’ll be served one of each of them to augment the tasting of the wines, along with good sourdough bread and olive oil.

1. Cantine Orsogna, Pinot Grigio Pet Nat Ramoro 2021, 12.5% abv; rrp £23
Natural, unfiltered sparkling wine. Persistently fizzy, with notes of rose petals, fresh apricot and a hint of bitter Seville orange

Paired with a canapé of goat’s cheese and toasted almond balls, skewered with Canteloupe melon and apricot.

2. Meinklang, Grüner Veltliner 2021, 11%; rrp £17
Dry, crisp and mineral, with hints of lemon and oregano, and a spicy white pepper finish

Served alongside

3. Meinklang Tag edition 2, 10.5%; rrp £33
Delicate and vibrant natural orange wine. Rose petal, mandarin orange and black pepper character

Paired with rye toasts with beetroot discs, peppered soft cheese and plums in plum vinaigrette

4. Hayes, Fromm Vineyard, Centenarian Semillon 2021, 12%; rrp £29
Medium-bodied white with bold aromas of citrus, chamomile and lemongrass; a little sweet spice from oak barrels and a slight salinity.

Served alongside

5. Smallfry, Tangerine Dream 2021, 12%; rrp £26
Dry and unfiltered, deeply orange in colour, bright natural profile. Notes of apricot, pink
grapefruit and black pepper

Paired with tiny new potatoes stuffed with Norfolk tawny cheese, peach, fennel and orange salad

6. Baša, Tamjanika Prva 2018, 13.5%; rrp £35
Dry, aromatic and complex Serbian orange wine, from a with notes of preserved lemon, poached pear, crystallised ginger and black tea

Paired with a blini topped with a blini topped with roast butternut squash, pear, créme fraîche and za’atar