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| View over the Polz Hochgrassnitzberg vineyard to a portion of the Slovenian border. |
June 25th
A troop of nineteen bright lights from the wine and restaurant world arrive at Graz airport in the south-east of Austria. Forests, greenery and cornfields. A ring of low mountains around an arable plain. We head towards the alpine vista to the vineyards of Polz on the border with Slovenia. At Hochgrassnitzberg, their top site for Sauvignon Blanc, it is all Tolkeinesque knolls and echoes of the vineyards of Piedmont.
The heat is quite intense now and the winds are dry. Winemaker Peter Keller talks about recent vintages as we taste through the range of wines at the chic hideaway of the Polz brothers on top of the Grassnitzberg vineyard, metres away from the Slovenian border. 2009 was notable for bad flowering and massive hail storms. 2010 offered a Saharan wind, even flowering, then a cold snap.
Tasting Notes
Sauvignon Blanc (SB) Hochgrassnitzberg 2008: Quite fine grassy and citric nose with a meaty, green pepper note, pea, fatty notes of ripe fruit then long, talc like length and sweet lychee flavours. Not in balance yet. Keller comments that he is convinced that Sauvignon can go 5 -10 years.
2006 (as above): More filled out with crystallised fruits, lychee again, a smoky mossy note, angelica and herb flecked yellow fruit, a fleshy feel with bitter flecks. Firm and dry, cooler, more Dagueneau Pouilly-Fumé feel but with more alcohol.
2007 Reserve Sauvignon: Banana. Lots of sweetness, confit yellow plum flavour, with much lower acidity from terraced vineyards directly on limestone.
Sauvignon Blanc Klassik 2009: More typically varietal with peppery, grapefruit flavours. Linear and clean with some cat pee final notes, still noticeable body and warmth on the end.
Pinot Gris Grassnitzberg 2008: Bitter and alcoholic. A head banger.
Sauvignon Therèse 2009: This schist vineyard gives more pronounced mineral purity; high altitude gives a linear, long flavour and acid. Like a top Sancerre - white currant, bourgeon de cassis, citric, grapefruit acid.
Sauvignon Hochgrassnitzberg 2007: Citronella, as in waxy herbal lemon, with more volume and character. Sweet and highly alcoholic, this is almost too concentrated for me and certainly needs time.
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| A statue of Dionysus outside the Buschenschank. |
Vineyards climb up a hill behind, and fall away in vistas to the front. My end of the table on this veranda designed for twenty includes a buyer who turned out to be a hilarious pain in the arse, an Antipodean sommelier, an Italian sommelier, a caveman, a monk and the hilarious Romain (another ex-monk, surely?) the sommelier from Hotel du Vin, Edinburgh, who became my best friend on this trip because he made me laugh from soup to nuts, so to speak.
A procession of dishes (at least a dozen) struck the heights with home-made pâtés served with cherry jam or verjus confit, and raw smoked ham as reeking as Laphroig. To eggs, beef, or chicken in paprika-spiked aspic, lots of sauerkraut, even presented like a pin-wheel Danish, and no sign of a fresh flavour anywhere. Which is bizarre in a land of green.
We travel many miles north to Pittnauer in Burgenland and arrive at 10.45 pm to a bonfire in a brazier on the lawn welcoming us to an amazingly Zeitgeisty winery and tasting room.
A biodynamic horn lies on its side in an acid pea green Perspex light box. Giant photographs of girls removing their knickers in the vineyard regale the winery doors, German hip hop plays on the stereo. Too cool for school?
We taste at a fabulous, long modernist table from impeccable glasses, and are fed our first Weiner Schnitzel, amongst other dishes.
Tasting Notes
Rosé 2009: Pale pink with a touch of orange. Frank nose, (made from Blaufrankisch), juicy ripe fruit with a nice rasp of acidity and a note of sweetness. A buzz.
Chardonnay 2009: Primary, simple, with not much depth at this stage in its life.
Zweigelt 2009: Young, fresh and boldly fruited with a touch of liquorice, slightly peppery with assertive, ripe tannins (made from Blaufrankisch crossed with St. Laurent by Dr. Zweigelt).
There is a silent, red-haired and bearded guy serving the wines. The assistant wine maker? A friend? An acolyte? He reminds me of a guy from a gay bear club. I stick to innocently flirting with Mac and his fabulous symmetry; noble brow, dancing eyes with a trace of melancholy, and mouth with a hint of the Joker.
Blaufrankisch 2008: Pale and perfumed with a jammy, mineral veneer, a definite weedy, earthy, tobacco note, a spicy cut through the rose scented flesh. A bitter wood note leaves a one-sided impression.
St. Laurent 2008: Sweeter and more savoury, voluminous with sweet raspberry top note. A lot like a fruit crumble, blackberry and apple, then the flavour hollows out like a cave. To age.
Pinot Noir 2008: Made from bought-in grapes. Slightly sour, cardboard and candied cherry aroma on a pale brackish rim. Very well-judged pinot as it turns out that keeps something back as it should. A touch of sweet, earthy beetroot.
Pinot Noir Fuchsenfeld 2008: An east-facing vineyard close to Hungary, with grapes produced by dedicated growers on sandy gravel. To me all the wines are starting to taste the same and I start to wonder if he only makes one wine. This tastes a bit New Zealand mixed with a scrawny Gevrey-Chambertin. There is definitely a sweet tone.
Pinot Noir Baumgarten 2008: An estate vineyard showing much less varietal character and far more Nebbiolo-like fruit. Cool and round, modern and a bit pretentious. Needs time.
Pannobile Blend 2008: A wine made by a collection of growers. A good chunky blend of Zweigelt, Blaufrankisch and other varieties.
St. Laurent Alte Reben 2008: Big, rich floral swig of flavour with lots of heady notes. Tangy oranges, spices and oodles of cool sexy fruit. This is always my favourite Pittnauer red.
How we deserved that cold beer on the way back to the hotel at 1am, and the joy of smoking a cigarette in a bar.
26th June 2010
We travel east to Illmitz to Helmut Lang where the small winery is impregnated with volatile acidity. No surprise since he only makes sweet wine, like a mad man.
Eiswein 2009 Gruner Veltliner + Yellow Muscat: First drink of the day at 9.30am, a wine of heady aromatics, exotic and herbal flavours, very peachy and thick.
Eiswein Gruner Veltliner 2008: Oil + pineapple + coriander seed (according to one of the restaurant pros) that is much nicer to taste without the addition of Muscat. It retains some clean vigour before a very sweet ending. A little like lime marmalade. Good.
Gewürztraminer TBA 2008: A very viscous brew that smells like Belgian beer and tastes like a dental product. Then a very exotic finish of passion fruit and pineapple.
Gelber Muskateller TBA 2009: Very delicious, clean notes of rose petal and incense.
Gelber Muskateller Eiswein 2008: Explosive kiwi and green tomato chutney (Romain’s note), then clean and sappy.
Riesling Eiswein 2008: Does it smell like Riesling? It smells to me like a pina colada.
Gewürztraminer Eiswein 2009: Tank sample of Turkish Delight.
Chardonnay BA 2009: Green, fat, weakly exotic.
Samling TBA 2006: Explosively fruity. Creamy, high toned (volatile). Peppermint. 3 years on lees. 3 year old vines!
We head to terraced vineyards on the north-west bank of the Neusiedler lake, a large expanse of water hedged by reed beds that never reaches depths of more than 1.5 metres. In a cold winter it becomes a giant ice rink. The Kirschgarten vineyard dates back to 1215 and has been restored by Umathum.
The lower section is limestone and marl, while the upper terrace is slate. Winds run through the vines in both directions. It must be one of the healthiest and most lusty looking vineyards I have ever seen. It is very windy here and in the distance a ridge of wind turbines turn it to green energy.
Blaufrankisch grows here at the end of the Alps before the Carpathians start at Bratislava 40km away. A confluence of influences of fauna and flora from the Mediterranean and central Europe exist here. We taste under a mulberry tree loaded with finger staining ripe fruits.
Tasting Notes
Harslevelu (Lindensblatter) 2009: One of the Tokaji grapes of Hungary. Sap, saffron, lily flavours and aromas, smooth structure with low alcohol yet powerful body. Tight and spicy and really good.
Traminer (yellow and red?): Bang! Powder of Muscat talc, luscious and pungent, full of flavour right through to the spicy warm finish. All flesh, fat and perfume.
Zweigelt 2009: Colour of the mulberry juice from the trees around us. Full of sweet, smooth, salty berry flavours, cherry cake smells, and a food friendly 12.5% alcohol. More fibre and texture than Pittnauer’s. A stalky but sappy finale.
Pinot Noir 2008: From the lower section of the Kirschgarten. Fabulous Gevrey-Chambertin-like nose, meaty, savoury low tones, plenty of oak now but lots of flavour and a succulent finish.
Blaufrankisch Kirschgarten 2006: Herbal, pepper, green dry notes like a spicy Loire Pineau d’Aunis. Very young to judge but compelling and uncompromising.
Zweigelt Heider? 2004: Pepper box and ripe red fruit, a violet note, a cool figure in the mouth, very delicious. Just shows that these wines need time in bottle.
Blaufrankisch Kirschgarten 2004: Almost Barossa Shiraz colour and richness but allied to a fresh, dry flavour profile. Structured and packed with cherry, fat ripe black cherry, touch of white pepper. Crushed and pulverised stone finale.
Auslese 2009: (80% Chardonnay 20% Samling ) Bliss. Fermented in new oak but you would never know. A perfect summer sweet wine.
Scheurebe TBA 2007: Confit stone fruits with a flinty note and a thick texture.
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| An excellent tasting. |
We move on to a great picnic lunch of black pudding, pig liver, slow roast pork belly, cabbage and potato salad, and of course the by now ubiquitous schnitzel, all under an arbour covered by vines, courtesy of the womanly Prieler and the noble Feiler-Artinger. We were all just getting to know each other. I had decided that Romain was going to be my best friend, like boys stranded at boarding school being told what to do. It is always an inspiration eating with a Frenchman I think. It was at that lunch that we got to know the boy from the country who had only ever visited an English vineyard. We were the smokers.
Lying in the grass in the hot sun having a cigarette after, the view from the low hill near Rust reminds me of the Pfalz in Germany. I would love a siesta.
We continue on to the beautiful Feiler-Artinger family house (with its magnificent front door in the form of a star) and winery in the historic and pretty town of Rust. The fame of the sweet wines of this town since the 15th century brought prosperity and the building of big houses. The barrels of wine from here were authenticated by the Prussian Queen Mary with a regal 'R'. This was part of Hungary until 1921.
We sit a long table in the winery with doors open either side, one way to a courtyard where a visiting choir intermittently sing motets, and the other out to the vegetable garden. The tasting is a comparison of wines from Prieler and Feiler-Artinger. Prieler identify the cultivation of Pinot Blanc back to the 12th century in this region and believe it to be underestimated. The grape is best suited to stony soils, she tells us.
Tasting Notes:
Pinot Blanc Seeberg 2009: A vineyard facing the lake on a hard limestone soil. Five months on lees. Young and pithy with ripe, smooth fruit. Very pleasing.
I am re-tasting this now in London and it is citrusy (lime), rich and mouthwatering. Truly Austrian!
Pinot Blanc 2002: Fuller colour and aroma that could match many Chardonnays. In immaculate condition with loads of limey presence. Almost a cross of Riesling and Chardonnay.
Leithaberg Pinot Blanc 2009: Delicate and breezy fresh apple from north facing site. Lovely smooth, composed and runny centre. Tightly wound. Long. Salt lemon finale.
Leithaberg 2007 Pinot Blanc: Opening to some more buttery notes; flatter nose and ripe nutty flavours, glycerol; harder to drink. Has a depth of mineral flavour.
Gustav 2008 Feiler-Artinger: Neuburger plus Chardonnay in the direction of old-school new world Chardonnay. Dull after clean pinot blanc with no oak.
Blaufrankisch 2008 Feiler-Artinger: Spicy, savoury and leaner - fine tart tannins and fresh liqueur feel. Good.
Blaufrankisch Johann 2008 Prieler: Candied cherries, sweeter, juicier fruit, riper, rich feel, still suffused with pepper.
Blackfrankisch Umriss 2008 Feiler-Artinger: Limestone vineyard - deep colour and a bit reduced - sumptuous aroma and full of ripe fruit - plenty of extract. Good.
Blaufrankisch Umriss 2002: Smells like old Burgundy or Bourgeuil or claret with lots of damp leaves. A treat.
Leithaberg Rot 2008 Prieler (Blaufrankisch): Sweet, fruity style, relatively straightforward. Softer feel and less pepper.
Leithaberg Rot 2007 Prieler: A real fruit bomb and drier tannins. One year more age brings out more of the personality.
Pinot noir 2008 Prelieur: Spicy, floral, wood cologne perfume, very supple with sweet, toasty aromas. Small candied cherries.
Pinot Noir Gertberg Feiler-Artinger 2007: Rich and more vinous. A sumptuous flavour, rather oaky, savoury under sweet. (100% new oak as it turns out). I have trouble identifying this as European pinot noir with sweet lack of acidity. Both winemakers confess that these are works in progress.
Goldberg Prieler 2007: Mica schist and stone vineyard. Rich, full-bodied and fruit driven. Graphite.
Goldberg 1999: Slightly dirty mature aroma with caramel (coffee - wet leaf - vegetal notes with wild berries - sloe - mulberry).
Solitaire 2007 Feiler-Artinger: Blaufrankisch plus Cabernet and Merlot gives drinking chocolate and dark choco-Horlicks aroma. A sweet and astringent flavour.
Solitaire 1999 - Feiler-Artinger: Maturing to autumnal sweetness with savoury soy note - round and full. Sweet and potent.
The following sweet wines are all from Feiler-Artinger:
Beerenauslese 2009: Pinot blanc/Chardonnay/Welsch Riesling - very sweet, slightly herbal, primary pineapple fruit.
BA Traminer 2008: Soapy Gewürztraminer-like aromatic - thick, oily palate leaves on a powdery, muscat fruity tone.
Ruster Ausbruch 2007: The speciality of the house and the town. Fabulous! Pure luxury. Pinot gris aromas of earth and mushroom on the most sumptuous, balanced, outrageous sweetness.
Essenz 2006: Brilliant Tokaji-esque wine of creamy cooked apricot and strawberry steeped in liquid caramel. Fabulous.
No Wine 2001: Welsch Riesling that had not fermented to the required 4% to be called wine - nose feral, wild blackcurrant leaf, palate bright tropical fruit acidity like over-ripe passion fruit, mango, pineapple attack at the end. Immortal.
The rock star glamour of Austria’s wine elite surfaces again that evening when we are deposited - minus Lance our leader - at a deserted ferry stop on the banks of the Neuseedler swamp. We wait confused among the ghost ships until the smell of rot draws us to a giant dead fish decaying in the evening warmth. Very David Lynch, I think. Finally a river taxi coasts by with a Frenchman waving at us to come aboard. It was a bit like von Aschenbach being ferried across the Venice lagoon in Death In Venice. How we hungered for Champagne during that 20 minute, mosquito infested ride.
We have crossed the Hungarian border and arrive at a jetty in the lake that is pretending it is in the Mediterranean. We dock at a restaurant perched in the lake, and the pilot of our boat turns out to be the chef. He had a Michelin-starred restaurant on the Austrian side that burnt down. Since then he has stuck to barbecuing in Hungary.
With long banquettes and giant white cushions under an awning, candles, and smells of barbecue, it is like the Ibiza of the lagoon. Our host is Austrian winemaker of the year Roland Velich of Weingut Moric. He has the confident swagger and hauteur of a smart New York art dealer. He seduces us. His polished, accurate, terroir-specific range of Blaufrankish are the epitome of Burgundian refinement, crammed with cherry and minerals, but I take a rest from writing notes this evening to enjoy the strange setting and relax.
Underneath his cool exterior one senses a steely will. The sexy Frenchman produces fantastic barbecue pike followed by rib of beef. I think by the end we all felt jaded.
Back on dry land in Rust some of us boys hit the local bar, the Rusty Nail, and return to the hotel slaked at 4am.
27th June
Bleary and half-awake the next day we travel to the Wachau. This is really the reason why I chose to come on this trip, like visiting a shrine. At Hirtzberger we meet the gorgeous strawberry blond prince of the Wachau, Franz Hirtzberger himself.
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| Franz Hirtzberger. |
Rocky outcrops, broken peaks, insinuated valleys, castle-topped crags, and a carpet of vines reaching along the north bank until they stop abruptly. A mysterious, aristocratic and folkloric place where dense forests inhabit the land unsuitable for vines. Below our feet rock studded with mineral, the famous primary rock.
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| Primary Rock. |
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| A carpet of vines. |
In the winery there is a striking cellar to house the library stock of older vintages that is an inspiration for an as-yet unrealised wine shop: Theatre of Wine, Vienna.
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| The Cellar |
Tasting Notes
The tasting reveals that there are no tricks here and no concession to fads. Commercially viable yields of 70 hectolitres per hectare and no less stirring or long lees ageing. Fermented, racked and bottled. Such a relief! This was the most joyous tasting and the funniest. They play of eyes and stares in that room that afternoon was spectacular. Almost everyone was speechless. Just the eyes. Suffice to say the wines are all marvellous.
Gruner Veltliner Rotes Tor Federspiel 2009: Green tones all over penetrating green with steely mineral drive, and green pepper, white spice.
Gruner Veltliner Kirchweg Smaragd 2009: Very young feel, all jelly babies and lanolin. A sappy feel and a ripe but not flashy taste of cooked pear with chilli. Very clean finish. Accessible.
Gruner Veltliner Rotes Tor Smaragd 2009: A very mineral smell like the hot quartz dust of the vineyard path. A direct expression with no obstacles. Gorgeously cool. Melon and spice. Long, long. Firm structure lasts all the way through. NOT flashy.
Gruner Veltliner Axpoint Smaragd 2009: Riper nose,more flamboyant but also more dappled and complex. (The names refers to an historical Abbey). Pungent texture, white feel. Liquorice vibe - almost redcurrant. To keep.
Gruner Veltliner Honigvogel (a family name) Smaragd 2009: Almost a fruit jelly cool as a marble slab. Anise, jellied fruit, tight, spice heat, sweet fruit. Great explosive finale.
Grauburgunder Plures Smaragd 2009: Cool, north-facing vineyard. A simpler, fruity wine, as Lance says “it’s a Hirtzberger Wachau wine before it’s a Pinot Gris”, which is a polite way of saying not a lot.
Riesling Steinterrassen Federspiel 2009: Sparkling clean and very thirst-quenching. No oil, no petrol. Orange feel. Very long, and very compelling.
Riesling Setzberg Smaragd 2009: Much less evolved. Alka Seltzer. Tremendous salty minerality.
Riesling Hochrain 2009: Dark and mealy, very opulent, like apricot marmalade, such a fruity flavour. Some of the Gruner Veltliner spice. Lush. Caustic extravagance.
Riesling Singerriedel 2009 : Bliss. Spiritual. Looking upwards. Choirs, voices sing.
A trip to Kremstal answers the vexed question, what is Loess? It looks like something that African ants live in. A great plastered slag of windblown mud, clay and sand that crumbles to the touch.
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| Was ist Loess? |
It is a bit of a come down to taste the wines of Felsner after Hirtzberger, but they are a charming, unaffected couple, even if they have one of the smelliest cellars ever. At my end of the tasting table outside on a slump of loess my companions start to get hysterical.
That night we receive a dreadful and dismissive meal at a traditional hotel on the Danube. Wagner on the jukebox, sentimental kitsch all over the place, and schnitzel again!
28th June
In the morning we go to Rainer Wess on the outskirts of Krems, to his new but unfinished cellar based in a former monastic cellar. It is rather dark and distinctly cold, but the wines are luminous. And he is such an illuminating advocate for the wines of the Wachau and Kremstal that it made the cold and dark bearable. Then we shot up those stairs at the end to bathe in the magnificent sunshine that morning. A wonderful feeling emerging into a tiny street from the cave.
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| Krems |
Tasting Notes:
Gruner Veltliner Wachau 2009: Relatively weighty with dental leesiness (my term). Very pulpy with some chilli heat at the end.
Gruner Veltliner Terrassen 2009: More mineral,or just a hit of sulphur, cleaner, leaner with interesting detail.
Gruner Veltliner Pfaffenberg 2009: A salty, heavy feel. Soft fruit in a stone fist. (Or stone fruit in a soft fist).
Gruner Veltliner Loiserberg 2009: Peach bath soap, salty, thick. Like porridge.
Riesling Wachau 2009: Sulphur with good, clean citric wine underneath.
Riesling Terrassen 2009: More extrovert stone fruits, juicy and mouthwatering. Very complete.
Riesling Pfafferberg 2009: Tight and sheer. Clenched. Skins of apples.
Riesling Loibenberg 2009: Touch of sulphur. Fuller and rounder with an oily, more advanced feel.
Riesling Loibenberg Reserve 2009: Made with some botrytis. Lots more overt fruit - pineapple, mango, strawberry. Good.
Riesling TBA 2008: Not initially very varietal, like dark, cooked and baked apricot, but great chewy fruit finish with tremendous zing.
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| Stadt Krems |
Back to town and we rejoin an old chum, Fritz Miebauer, at Stadt Krems, an haute-couture state co-operative. As if by a miracle we had met him in the deserted streets of picturesque Krems last night driving home in his car. We were looking for a bar after our ordeal in the restaurant but nothing was open. We walked up Gothic streets to the coolest place in town thanks to Fritz.
Stadt Krems: a cool modernist tasting room with light pouring in that is both lovely to look at and to taste in, its long light soaked but cool tasting table. I sat next to the monk and we enjoyed comparing notes. I remember a conversation we had in the Rusty Nail, when he told me that the wine business needed more people like me. We arrive on a day when part of the cellar roof has collapsed and thousands of litres of wine are sinking into the foundations beneath our feet. They take the disaster with an astonishing good humour.
Tasting Notes
Gruner Veltliner Lössterrassen: Smooth, loamy nose with lots of glycerol, round but firm with clean, citric freshness.
Gruner Veltliner Kremstal 2009: Focused, bright and creamy nose, lush texture, fruity with quite firm limestone finish (meaning a punchy end).
Gruner Veltliner Weinzierberg 2009: Lactic with a citric tang. A playful nose and a lovely purity and clean flavour on the palate. Long and subtle, with significant alcohol.
Gruner Veltliner Wachtberg Reserve 2009: Soapy, mineral nose and aroma. Powerful all over and sort of sizzles. Hard to access. Skin contact for 36 hours. To age.
Riesling Steinterrassen 2009: Reductive at first. A very cool vibe in the mouth. Like a sorbet.
Riesling Kogl 2009: A schist vineyard showing very nice splashes of ripe, perfumed fruit. Very swish and energetic. Flamboyant but underpinned by firm, dry finish.
Kogl 2008: Warmer, less fruit driven nose and quite reduced. More straight forward with less minerality and sweeter vibe. Fleshy.
Kogl 2007: Lush, limey, full and like an Ozzie Riesling, with a touch of bitterness and a salty twang, rich with lots of grapey notes.
Riesling Grillenparz 2009: Stunning clear and expressive lemon intense - almost lemon sherbet. Pin bright. Great.
Grillenparz 1990: Extraordinary aroma of lavender, wild flowers, herbs, fruit, umami broth. Delicate palate, vanilla, soft, and developed. Killer nose.
Grillenparz 1979: I love this too even if the nose is now caramelised, mushroomy, dusty. Bosky, peaty, varnishey and still holds together a citric finish. Bravo!
Gruner Veltliner Gottweig 2009: Bursting with life! One of the nicest, cleanest and most Riesling like. An elegant, mineral, flinty finish.
Gruner Veltliner Gottwieg Gottschelle 2009: Creamy nose of ripe fruit, preserved fruits. Rich texture. Almost dried fruits. Full but very fresh (wet stone). A real balancing act.
These were two of my favourite Gruner Veltliners of the trip, but the whole tasting was a joy, especially the Rieslings. Thank you, Stadt Krems.
The final stop before our return flight is Schloss Gobelsberg. Such a shame it isn’t a hotel as we would have all liked a lie down either before or after the imperial lunch that was then served on the lawn. Romain dived on the wine and fortunately I was sitting beside him. In the absence of the winemaker - due to illness - his father-in-law stood in with panache. My head was dizzy trying to take in every twist and turn of the building's history, and with it the history of Austria. In the garden I was instructed to smell a rose that was so reminiscent of a Gewürztraminer it was uncanny and of such a purple colour and compact shape. Romain confessed his parents had propagated English roses and told me the name. I am not convinced I know how to write it though: Louis Deux Seize? Gardeners let me know.
Difficult to do justice to this place as there are no notes in my diary but this lunch straight out of Effie Briest of hoch Austrian dishes was illuminated by Mr Moosbruger’s father-in-law. His passion for the Prussian was a marvellous, humane counter to that torture chamber last night. The history you should look up yourself, or ask about it when you visit the magnificent cellars crammed with treasured old bottles and extraordinary modern stone sculptures, which I liked very much.
So this was not seduction, this was the real deal. Overwhelming as it was at the time.
Gaisberg Riesling (gais = goat) 2009: New made! Pichler-style precision. Luminous. Lemon peel. Focused. Charming. Sweet fruit with lots of acidity. Dry mineral intensity, yet lush.
Riesling Heiligenstein 2009: An oily advanced nose, definitely full-bodied. Cold fire. Full-on and penetrating. You will wait to enjoy this.
Riesling Tradition 2008: With lees stirring and oxidative handling. Smells like summer. A breeze of orange. Pulp of strawberry. Thrilling acid. A much broader wine.
Sekt - Gruner/Pinot Noir/Riesling - 1.5 yrs on lees. The zing makes your eyes vibrate. Green fruits, lime cava notes. Sherbet. Could make a good champagne cocktail.
Gruner Veltliner Steinsetz: Primary banana and earthy notes; full and rich. The finish is citric and clean (he says to go with asparagus).
Gruner Veltliner Renner: (to go with stuffed breast of veal or seafood risotto). Rather overpowering in my weakened state.
Gruner Veltliner Tradition: From the same vineyard. Smells of egg noodles, herbs and lactic lush. Herbal finish. Peppery leaves. He recommends with Stilton! You can begin to imagine what evening meals must be like in the Schloss.
Gruner Veltliner Grub: More like incense, very silky, oily with minerals, dry and nutty; strong (with pan fried foie gras - is he insane as well as ancient?)
Gruner Veltliner Lamm: (loess soils) Sweet note here. Mineral oils and ginger. Creamy substance. He says have with oriental food. It has a sort of water chestnut, bamboo shoot and soy vibe. Perhaps there is wisdom in old age after all. He reminds me of Max Wall in Krapp’s Last Tape.
Gruner Veltliner Eiswein 2008: More acidity than most, still some peppers and pineapple and paprika flavour. A bit simple finally.
Riesling TBA 2008 - Lots going on and a big caramelised finish.
