John Worontschak is an Australian born and trained winemaker who came to England in the mid 1980’s after honing his craft in Australia, California and France.
In 1988 at the Thames Valley Vineyard in Berkshire he established a contract winemaking company receiving grapes from all over the country and made award-winning wines of a uniquely outstanding quality.
John was one of the pioneers in the making of quality English sparkling wines but it was English still wines that were his passion and he set out to make a world class premium English still wine.
Virtually spring frost free, 2020 got off to a great start with moderate to good yields predicted. Prolonged rainy periods throughout the season gave rise to some difficulties with the best drained sites producing the highest quality wines.
Modern white wines are generally pressed from their skins prior to fermentation. Orange wine is a term given to white wines that have been fermented and aged on their skins.
2020 Litmus Orange is produced from the Bacchus grape variety which was fermented and remained for sixteen weeks on skins without sulphur dioxide before bottling in March 2021.
Pale gold in colour the wine displays hazelnut, fennel and marzipan characters on the nose. The palate has a touch of white pepper spice, is incredibly generous and complex and boasts a long broad palate with a gripping astringency and smooth, long finish.
Pair with curry dishes, Moroccan cuisine, Ethiopian cuisine (like those spongelike pancakes called Injera), Korean dishes with fermented kimchi (Bibimbap), and traditional Japanese cuisine, including fermented soybeans (Natto)
