Öömrang Müller-Thurgau Puget Sound 2022

Add 4 bottles to the cart and receive an additional 51% off!

We’re always hunting for unexpected, crushable whites, and look what we found! A 93-pointer from an enchanting family project in Puget Sound, out of Washington State. The rare Franconion grape blend delivers lush aromatics and a kiss of tropical fruit at a lean 12% alcohol. It’s like Riesling on vacation with the volume turned up – and under $20 when you get 4 or more!

Öömrang is one of those serendipitous wineries. Edmund and Christine Stoecklein moved from New York to Washington State in 2016, and Christine thought Thanksgiving at the new house would be more fun if the family tried making wine in the basement. They bought some grapes, had a great time, liked the results, and wanted to keep going. Edmund felt a little worried about how much wine you could legally make at home, which led to a discussion with an attorney… and the creation of Öömrang. (These people are delightfully full-throttle with anything they touch.) By June, they had planted their first vines.

Öömrang now has 22 acres of grapes, with a focus on Franconian‑style German whites and that are very rare in the United States. Edmund was born in Germany, as were Christine’s parents, and the winery gets its name from the Frisian word for the island of Amrum. Christine went back to Germany to absorb traditional skills, and in a short time, the project had racked up numerous awards and high ratings for both their wines and eau de vie brandies. She heads up winemaking and distilling with a simple goal: “Make things that taste good.” The fruit was grown on the estate using organic methods, against a postcard backdrop of Puget Sound, the Olympic Mountains, and the Cascades. Rainfall is low here, winters are mild, and summers are ideal. But the full scene at Öömrang? Heartfelt whimsy. There is a skeet shooting range, a greenhouse for growing wasabi, and a pointy wooden chapel with a floor-length mosaic of a saint. Bells that ring on the same schedule as the diocese of Munich, farm equipment made in Germany, and a glorious copper still. Edmund’s family owns a 150-year-old winery in northern Bavaria, so maybe it was all inevitable.

Müller-Thurgau is Riesling’s love child, and the second most popular grape variety planted in Germany. Loaded with pink grapefruit, lemon, and lime, along with papaya, and guava, and bushels of peaches – this is a full-fledged rainbow of fruit, with a steely, minerally, river-rocky backbone and underpinnings of white florals. It is an absolute thrill to sip on, and goes down entirely too easy! Under $50 is a seriously good deal for a few of these, but under $20 for 4 or more bottles is a downright steal. Bring home your 6-pack (free delivery, too!), and sip away the rest of your summer in golden ambrosia bliss!

PAIRING IDEAS: Something a little sweet and a little savory would be lip-smackingly good with this mouthwatering white – I’m going for this grilled honey mustard chicken with peach salad.