A 2004 Roter Traminer, tasted from cask, offers an enticing nose of rose petal, litchi, white peach, and brown spices. Creamy and polished in the mouth, with medium body, it displays subtle suggestions of sweet peas, honey, apple blossom and rose petal, then billows into a long, refined finish of striking florality and spice. Sadly, these old vines had to be pulled after they gave this wine. Importer: Weygandt-Metzler Importing, Unionville, PA; tel. (610) 486-0800

The 2003 Roter Traminer was intensely scented with clove-studded, brown-spiced apple and rose petal. Oily and glycerin-rich, this fat and full-bodied wine exhibits a meaty, butcher shop character beneath its flowers and spice. The finish is intense but warmer and less intriguing than that of the 2004. Importer: Weygandt-Metzler Importing, Unionville, PA; tel. (610) 486-0800

The apple-scented 2001 Roter Traminer Grassnitzberg has an oily texture, a medium body and rich, thick fruit. It is not as dense or boisterous and complex as the 2000, but the 2001 is appealingly fruity. This well-balanced offering will make for a lovely aperitif wine if consumed over the next 2-3 years. Importer: Vin Divino, Chicago, IL; tel. (773) 334-6700

Tement's 2000 Roter Traminer Grassnitzberg has a delightful nose of roses, spices and ripe pears (a cousin of the more widely seen Gewurztraminer, Roter (red) Traminer has darker berries). The wine is soft, lush, satin-textured, and medium-bodied. Its spicy personality is loaded with expressive red and white fruits. Drink it over the next 4 years. Importer: Vin Divino, Chicago, IL; tel. (773) 334-6700