Austria’s most significant white wine variety is Grüner Veltliner, which most probably derives from a crossing with Traminer. The second parent remains unconfirmed, but it is thought to be a Century old variety discovered in St. Georgen in Burgenland.
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The Ott family has been growing and producing wine in the region of Wagram in Lower Austria since 1889. Bernhard Ott is of the fourth generation and has managed the winery since 1993, when he took the helm from his father. When he came home to the winery as a 21 year old, he was interested in producing wines of the highest quality. Bernhard wanted to prove that elegant and long lived wines could be produced from Grüner Veltliner grown on loess soil, specifically from Rosenberg vineyard. Bernhard replaced the old wooden casks with stainless steel and began working the vineyards with an aim for the highest high quality. In 2004 Benhard began composting, using organic cow manure from a friend in the region. In the past four years he’s used so much manure that the EU contacted him; “they didnt think it was possible to use 100,000 Euros worth of manure – they thought there was some accounting mistake. In 2006 he took a trip to the legendary biodynamic property Domaine La Romanée Conti in Vosne, with his best friend, Hans Reisetbauer. There, after a marathon tasting in the cellars with Aubert de Villaine, Bernhard committed to move to biodynamic viticulture. In 2007, with Johannes Hirsch, Fred Loimer and a group of like-minded producers, Respekt was formed. In 2014, after a very difficult harvest in which Bernhard didn’t bottle any single vineyard wines, he decided to work whole cluster saying “the stem is part of the grape. If you work without stems, you get more sweetness, more round fruit.” Today, Bernhard is looking back to previous generations for inspiration and to inform both his work in the vineyard and in the cellar. Grapes are picked at full ripeness, but thanks to biodynamic farming and composting, the sugar ripeness stays very moderate. “The compost helps with water regulation. Healthy soils give water when the weather is dry and take it back when there is too much. This also means no irrigation at all.” says Bernhard. In addition to working the soils with compost, Bernhard is a firm believer in not disrupting the eco-sysytem under the soils too much, preferring to plowing only 8cm deep. Harvest is done 100% by hand, something that is very important to note in a region who’s rolling hills and flatter landscape allow for machine harvesting. After picking and a strickt selection, the fruit is crushed in the press and maceration is done inside the press. The length of the maceration depends on the vintage, but also on the vineyard and the quality of the fruit. Bernhard uses closed pneumatic presses and has several different sizes. “This is how the press used to operate – there was only one pressing per day, so there was a maceration in the press.” explains Berhard. The juice is “browned” and racked into stainless steel where it is fermented by native yeasts without temperature control. Minimal amounts of sulfur are used at harvest and bottling and the cellar is very cold, inhibiting the development of malolactic. The single vineyard wines from the three Erste Lagen – Rosenberg, Spiegel and Stein – are on the full less until June or July before racking and bottling. The resulting wines are some of the very finest in Austria, straddling a juicy character with strong soil signatures. -
Weingut Birgit Eichinger was founded in 1992 by Birgit Eichinger and her husband Christian, who started out with roughly nine acres of vineyards shed from her parents' business, over time the vineyard area was expanded to 23 acres in the best traditional sites of Strass. This is a single-vineyard Grüner, from a vineyard whose loess (loose and sandy) soils and southward face are perfect for the cultivation of traditional Kamptal-style Grüner. The Birgit Eichinger Grüner Veltliner Strass Kamptal impresses with its elegantly dry taste. It was put on the bottle with only 1.8 grams of residual sugar. As one can of course expect with a wine, this Austrian naturally enchants with the finest balance in all dryness. Taste doesn't necessarily need sugar. On the palate, the texture of this light-footed white wine is wonderfully light. Due to the balanced fruit acidity, the Grüner Veltliner Rhinestone Kamptal flatters with velvety mouthfeel, without missing out on juicy liveliness. The finish comes with mineral notes of the soils dominated by loess soil and sandstone. -
Gruner Veltliner is Austria’s most important indigenous grape and up until the 1990s it was relatively unheard of. Gruner Veltliner has many charms, one of them being the consistency of the quality and the flavour profile; it always delivers what it says on the tin. Ferdinand Mayr is a musician turned winemaker and his organic wines are singing with flavour and intensity. Whoever says Grüner Veltliner says Austria and vice versa. This version of Ferdinand Mayr is accessible and it charms you right away. Exuberant, lively nose of citrus, apple and white pepper. On the palate, the ripe fruit and spiciness create a pleasant tension with the acidity. Crispy and ripe, as if you were biting into a juicy apple. Flavor and spiciness characterize this wine. Fantastic with Japanese or Thai cuisine. -
Grüner Veltliner is Austria's most famous grape variety and is considered Austria's national grape variety. The best Grüner Veltliner wines come from the northeast of the country, especially regions such as the Wachau, Kamptal and Kremstal bordering the Danube River. This wine made by Weingut Weixelbaum the winery of Heinz and Gabi Weixelbaum. Located in the village of Strasser in the Austrian Kamptal. It is a medium sized, typical Austrian winery. A family business that is passed on from generation to generation. Heinz Weixelbaum has very good vineyards on soils of 'urgestein' and 'loess', Heinz also dares to prune a lot in the spring, so that his wines are more powerful than most from the region. The Weixelbaum family only makes wine from grapes from its own 22 hectares of vineyards. Everything is done by hand and the cellar is full of the most modern equipment. The vineyards in the Kamptal owe their name to the river Kamp that flows through the area. It is one of the most prestigious Austrian wine districts. In this wine-growing region, which is part of the federal state of Lower Austria, warm and sunny summer days ensure optimal ripening of the grapes. In addition, a cooling breeze during the night guarantees flawless aromas and refined acids in the wines. The vineyards are mainly terraced along the steep banks of the river. The soil consists largely of loess, loam, gravel, sandstone and shale. Because the roots of the vines can reach up to six meters deep, the wines get a different character on every surface. -
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The exciting Muhr-Van der Niepoort project began in 2002 as a collaboration between Austrian PR guru Dorli Muhr and celebrated Portuguese winemaker Dirk Niepoort. Although the name is taken from the village of Prellenkirschen, all of the grapes for the white are sourced from the Spitzerberg, or a continuation of it. A blend of 90% Gruner Veltliner (35 year old vines) and 10% Riesling (planted in 1950), the grapes see some skin contact in the fermentation, imbuing the final wine with tension and extract, a mouth-watering savoury salinity and clearly-delineated spicy flavours of white pepper, fennel and cumin. Deep and a touch wild on the palate but with enormous personality and interest, its deep savoury style will appeal to lovers of edgy yet serious food-friendly whites. -
Like every vintage, the Grüner Veltliner Domain Gobelsburg is the benchmark wine in this price range, balanced, juicy and delicate, that's how Veltliner is fun. Delicate spice on the nose with some Boskop apple, Williams pear and herbaceous hints of thyme and mint. On the palate a rather soft texture, gentle fruit with a nice acidic accompaniment, delicately piquant pepper, then some minerality comes through. Again one of the most harmonious entry-level Veltliners of this vintage! -
All Sepp Moser wines have been organic (and all estate wines biodynamic) since 2007. The Sepp Moser Estate comprises of 50 acres of vineyards in two prominent wine regions; Kremstal and Neusiedlersee. Now run by Sepp's son Nikolaus, he produces an international range of varieties as well as the ever more important local varieties of Gruner Veltliner and Riesling in the Kremstal. Delicate aromas of pear, kiwi, apricot and white spice. On the palate stone fruit flavours and white pepper lead to a gently textured, mineral and citrus finish. Great with fish, Chicken or light dishes in general. Lovely on its own on hot summer day
