AUSTRIAN SELECTIONS

Interest in Austrian wines is on the rise.  Given the drinkability of many of the wines, it's no wonder that those who actually "drink" wine (as opposed to those who merely "collect") are discovering these.

We have access to many of the wines from the top Austrian producers.  Like every other part of the wine world, our modest selection is based on our tastings, with an eye towards value.  If we don't have what you want, perhaps we can order it for you.

Most of the firms importing Austrian wines view these as an auxiliary part of their portfolios.  Staying "current" is difficult, since there is not a huge demand for these and the importers of these are too small to make much of a 'career' out of representing solely Austrian estates.

Back to my "Introductory" page on Austria's wine scene...

MALAT

Gerald Malat ranks as one of Austria's leading winemakers.  He was one of the first to mature some of his wines in French oak barriques.  
Years ago we paid a visit to the Wachau region and tasted 70 or so wines in the Vinothek at Kloster Und.  My favorite wine was a Chardonnay from Malat.  I bought a few bottles, unaware that may German pals had booked an appointment with Malat at his little winery in Palt.  It seems the same wine had won a blind-tasting of theirs and they wanted to get to know the wines better and buy some directly from the estate.

Malat's wines were uniformly good.  I recall, too, tasting many fine distillates there, as he makes some outstanding liqueurs and schnapps.  

We recently found an old Austrian acquaintance who is importing some of Malat's wines.  Happily the wines are delicious and we selected a couple to have in the shop.

Malat's 2001 Grüner Veltliner is a good example of Austria's famed white grape.  The wine is dry, medium-bodied and well suited to lighter seafoods or service as an aperitif.  The 2001 Riesling "Kellergarten" is also dry, more fruity and mildly floral.  You can serve it with all kinds of foods: fish, Asian-styled cuisine, smoked pork chops, etc.  

The Brut sparkler is a nice, dry bubbly...definitely NOT Champagne, but quite good.  Rather dry, too.  I know Malat's been making this for years.   On our first visit, many years ago, Malat had been visited by a group of French winemakers.  One prominent Champagne producer gave him some tips to make the wine more along the lines of a French Champagne.  Malat told the fellow he was not interested in making French Champagne, but in Austrian sekt.  

There's a nice, light Pinot Noir.  This wine displays some good cherry fruit and a bit of wood.  We had a bottle with a winter-time platter of sauerkraut, smoked pork and various sausages.  This was impressive in that setting.

A Cabernet was very charming as a barrel sample.  It is not hugely tannic nor astringent as it's intended to be drinkable in its youth.  Lots of dark fruit and a nice touch of oak.

Currently in stock: 2001 GRÜNER VELTLINER Sold Out

2001 RIESLING "Kellergarten" Sold Out
MALAT BRUT SPARKLING WINE $25.99
2003 MALAT PINOT NOIR Reserve $29.99
2003 MALAT CABERNET SAUVIGNON Reserve $42.99

 

Mr. & Mrs. Malat (her family is Bründlmayer, another great wine name!)


Malat in his fermentation cellar.


Malat's sparkling wine cellar.


Though he uses a lot of small French oak barrels, you'll see a fair bit of large cooperage, too.


After the wines are transferred (racked) out of oak, the wood barrels need to be cleaned.


Gerald Malat opening a bottle of his fantastic Reserve Cabernet.


We also tasted the 2003s from barrel...very promising wines!

GEYERHOF

We tasted a superb dry Riesling from this little estate in Austria's Kremstal region.

Geyerhof is owned by Ilse and Josef Maier have about 15 hectares of vines in the town of Furth, close to the Danube River.  It's close to an hour's drive from Vienna to the Geyerhof winery.  

The Maiers are big proponents of organic farming.  Ilse Maier has even written a book on thye subject!

The Riesling comes from their Sprinzenberg vineyard and it's a beauty!  The aromas are intense and classic--nice floral notes with a fruity element and an underlying minerality.  The nose and flavors recall nectarines and peaches and then there's that wonderful stony element on the palate.  The wine is dry, but it has intensity and length.  We suspect this would age well, but don't expect anybody will be able to keep their hands off it as a young wine.

Currently in stock:  2006 GEYERHOF Kremstal RIESLING "Sprinzenberg" $26.99

 

 

RUDI PICHLER

There are two Pichlers in the Wachau and both merit great acclaim for their wines.

One is F.X. Pichler in Durnstein and the other is Rudi in Wosendorf.

Rudi has been making wine since 1997, so he's not exactly an old-timer in the Wachau.  Further, he chose not to study winemaking in a formal school setting, but instead ventured to a nearby cellar where he got "hands on" training in vinification and viticulture.

Pichler has some interesting winemaking philosophies and he rolls the dice a bit.  Native yeasts are employed, for one thing.  For another, he's big on skin contact, even though many winemakers will tell you it's not necessary for white wine production.  Pichler, though, feels a half a day in contact with the skins really brings out the full expression of the grape and its terroir.   Keeping sulfite levels to a minimum is another vinification technique which Pichler employs.  He feels adding sulfites immediately suppresses the 'fruit' and terroir in his wines, so he works carefully in this regard.

We have a lovely 2005 Grüner Veltliner...a 2005 "Federspiel" level wine which offers minerally notes and the spicy tones we like in this sort of wine.  The flavors are expressive and linger for a while on the palate.  Perfect as a cocktail or seafood white.

Currently in stock:  2005 RUDI PICHLER Wachau Grüner Veltliner $25.99




LENZ MOSER

The Lenz Moser name was a hallowed label many years ago and it's still considered a bit of a barometer for Austrian wine.

In the 1920s, Lenz Moser III had come up with a vine cultivation method known as the "Lenz Moser High Training System," a technique allowing good air circulation on the vines and it was economically advantageous for growers.  The company, though, was sold by the Moser family not too long after the famous Austrian wine scandal and today they have virtually no vineyards of their own!  Yet the firm is one of the biggest, if not the biggest in Austria.

We tasted a remarkably good, wonderfully charming little Blauer Zweigelt from the 2005 vintage.  This is not an "important" wine in the sense that it's profound, deep and complex.  Far from it.  But this is delicious, berryish and mildly spicy.  Most people guessed this to be some sort of rendition of Zinfandel when I poured them a (blind) taste.  It's slightly bigger than a good Beaujolais, but as exuberantly fruity and charming.  Not intended for aging and its ten-buck price tag adds to the charm.

Currently in stock:  2005 LENZ MOSER Blauer Zweigelt  $9.99

EHN

Here's another modest-sized, family operated winery from the Kamptal, west of Vienna about 50 miles.  It's run by a brother and sister team, Ludwig Ehn making the wines and taking care of the cellar, while his sister Michaela handles vineyard work and sales & marketing.

Ludwig took over the winemaking from his father back in 1990.  A major Austrian wine guide says the winery is "redefining itself and is right on target with its wines."  

We only recently became acquainted with a couple of their wines and one, in particular, was most striking!  It's called Jubiläumswein and it comes from a vineyard planted by the Ehn's grandfather 50 to 60 years ago.  What's especially interesting is that this wine comes from a vineyard planted with numerous grape varieties.  Alter Panzaun is the vineyard site.  There are eight varieties incorporated into this lovely dry white:  Riesling, Grüner Veltliner, Pinot Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, Muskat Ottonel, Gelber Muskateller, Müller-Thurgau and Welschriesling.  Ellen found this to show notes of exotic tropical fruits.  We all liked its intense aromas and bright, sprightly flavors.  It's excellent as a cocktail white and pairs nicely with white meat dishes or seafood.

Currently in stock:  2005 Ehn "Jubiläumswein" $14.99 

 

 

 

IBY

This little estate in Austria's Burgenland is close to the sea, allowing for cool nights to temper the vines after a tough day in the hot summer sun.   IBY produces only red wines, the region being well-regarded for its Blaufränkisch wines (Lemberger is another name for this variety, as is "Kefrankos," its Hungarian name). 

Mom works in the vineyards, taking care of cultivating the grapes.  Dad is the business manager and salesman, while son Anton Markus Iby is the winemaker and cellar rat.   We liked the IBY Zweigelt, a grape that's a crossing of Blaufränkisch and another Austrian red, St. Laurent.  The resulting wine is a mildly berryish red with a bit of spice. Anton tells us he matures the wine in large oak cooperage for about a year.

You can serve this in place of a good Côtes-du-Rhône and it will show best at cool cellar temp.  Consider serving this with grilled pork, turkey roasted in your Webber kettle, roasted chicken, etc.  It will also show well as a picnic red.  

Currently in stock:  2003 IBY Zweigelt Classic Sold Out

 

Iby's vineyards are immaculate.  Many young vines.


The cellars are "hospital" clean and very orderly.


Here's Anton "call me Tony" Iby showing off the door to one of their large wine casks.  The inside of the cask has tartrate crystals adhering to it.  These are a natural "sediment" of the winemaking process.


Tony "in action" in the Iby tasting room.  This is a "must stop" if you find yourself in the Blaufränkischland town of Horitschon.

WEINGUT RENNER

Helmut Renner is a young winemaker in the town of Gols.  The region is the Neusiedlersee and he cultivates mostly red grapes.  Though he produces mostly Zweigelt and Blaufränkisch, we tasted an amazingly good Syrah from this fellow.

He's a member of the group of winemakers who producer wines called Pannobile, a sort of "Meritage Association" in Austria.  

We found Helmut Renner's 2002 Syrah to be stunning.  Austria is not especially well-known for its red wines in our market, so tasting this peppery, mildly spicy red was a real treat.  It demonstrates that if someone pays attention in the vineyard as well as in the cellar, good things can be created.

We had a dynamite Zweigelt, too....but that's gone now...

Currently in stock:  Sold out

 

 

 

 

 

ERICH & WALTER POLZ

2001 "Klassick" SAUVIGNON BLANC  Sold Out

These fellows are located in Styria, the "Steiermark".  More precisely, they're in the Südsteiermark.  
If you visit this winery, you actually drive PAST a customs' checkpoint!  Fall off the Polz' balcony and you're in Slovenia.

The brothers decided if they continued making wine in the same fashion as previous generations, they'd merely be "farmers."  Striving for superior quality, they felt they could make a name for themselves.  And that's what they've done and continue to do.

Yields in the vineyards are reduced in order to maximize quality.  The wines are vinified in impeccably clean cellars.  Some wines are matured in oak, others seeing no wood at all.  

Their Sauvignon Blanc wines are routinely excellent.  Though New Zealand has burst onto the scene over the past few years, there are a number of Austrian Sauvignons which are at least as compelling as the Kiwi wines.  Unfortunately, these are well known bottlings and they cost more than those famed New Zealand offerings.  I selected Polz's "normal" bottling of Sauvignon, as it is within the realm of reality, price wise.  The wine has spot-on, citrusy Sauvignon character.  It is a perfect aperitif or seafood white and will pair handsomely with Asian-styled foods.

While we've enjoyed their wines, the prices asked by the local importer a few years ago really slowed down sales.  A new importer was appointed in 2004 and the wines are still ambitiously priced (Klassick Sauvignon would wear a $35 or $30 price tag!)  As a result, we won't be offering these in the future until someone comes to their senses.


    POLZ PHOTOS

Photo:  This is called a "klapotets."  You'll see these all over the Steiermark region as they're used to scare away birds which might have an interest in eating the grapes which are ripening on the vine.
Photo is copyright of Weimax and was taken by Gerald Weisl.

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NIKOLAIHOF-WACHAU
2001 "Hefeabzug" GRÜNER  VELTLINER Sold Out

This is the Wachau's oldest winery and it's owned and operated by the Saahs' family.  These people farm their vineyards according to the principles of "bio-dynamic" farming.  This is not only "organic farming," it's more difficult, more demanding and more intense.  

In one of the marathon tastings of Austrian wines, I was enchanted with Nikolaihof's 2001 Grüner Veltliner.  The wine is quite different from the California Chardonnay you might be accustomed to drinking.  First, it's only 11% alcohol, not 14.3%!!!  This wine is aged on its spent yeast for a few months, so there's a mild yeasty note to the nose.  I also like the fresh appley fruit and the crisp acidity.  

Bio-dynamic farming.


Christine Saahs shows us how healthy the soils and vines are.  The vineyards are impressive and though we tend to be a bit cynical and skeptical, the wines speak for themselves.


Like many vineyards, Nikolaihof's feature a rose bush by every row.  This allows the grower to monitor the vines' progress as a rose bush is susceptible to the same maladies as a vine, except they show the problem well before one would see the effects on a vine.


The cellars are old and very traditional.


I think this is a replica of Austrian wine guru Terry Theise.


We tasted many wines on our visit at Nikolaihof.  Very impressive.


Christine sits for a rare moment to have a sniff and a taste.


Many bottles were opened for this visit!


We presented Christine with a "loud" apron which she seemed to enjoy.

TEMENT 2003 SAUVIGNON BLANC  Sold Out
TEMENT  2005 "Zieregg" SAUVIGNON  $54.99
TEMENT 2005 PINOT BLANC (WEISSBURGUNDER)  $15.99

I have seen this producer's wines mentioned in various European wine magazines as they make some excellent wines in the Styria region. Tement is regarded as one of the top three producers of white wines in Austria's Steiermark and his expensive Zieregg Sauvignon Blanc is close in quality to the barrel-aged Pouilly-Fumé wines made by France's Didier Daguenau.  Too bad it's about $55 a bottle, or I'd have it in the shop to recommend to you!

The winery is highly-regarded amongst the cognoscenti in Austria.  They make quite a line-up of wines, but we're especially thrilled with Sauvignon Blanc from this estate.  A new Pinot Blanc is also worthy of our recommendation.

With about 35 hectares, Tement's wines are in such great demand, that he's got them sold before they're even bottled.  

 

Manfred Tement in his spacious cellar.

We have Tement's "regular" bottling of Sauvignon Blanc and it's a leading Austrian white wine.  Oak is not a noticeable part of this wine.  It's quite dry and shows hints of citrus and herbs.  You can't mistake it for Chardonnay (a major 'plus' in our book) and it's got really nice balance between the acidity and fruit.  

The wine is lovely with seafood...Bob prepared some prawns as part of a salad recently and this was absolutely outstanding!

Tasting the Tement line-up at the winery tasting room...well worth a visit, by the way!

 

Tement's 2005 Pinot Blanc, which goes by the German name of Weissburgunder, is a delight!

Here's a wine that's less than 12% alcohol (unheard of these days in California!) which is non-oaked (unheard of these days in California, practically!).  It offers fresh, bright, appley/pear-like aromas on the nose and leaves a crisp, tangy, zesty impression on the palate.
It's a wonderful warm weather white and pairs well with seafood or mildly-seasoned poultry.

 

 

 

 

WEINGUT BRÜNDLMAYER

This is a famous estate and when you taste a range of their wines, you'll understand why.

Located in the region of Kamptal, the winery is in the town of Langenlois, one of Austria's biggest wine villages.

The Bründlmayer family has about 60 hectares of vineyards, so this is not a particularly tiny winery.  Yet the quality of the wines is remarkably consistent and precise.  About a third of the vineyards are planted to Grner Veltliner and organic farming is the program here.  

We have a superb 2003 Grüner Veltliner designated "Kamptaler Terrasseen," as the vineyards are on little terraces.  Cultivation is of great importance and the Bründlmayers work hard to grow the best possible fruit.  They even use a special type of wood for this wine, preferring Acacia wood for Grner Veltliner, while they use oak for their other wines.  We like the minerally tones in this wine and that it's bone, stone dry.  You'll also encounter the lovely spice and grapefruit peel character typical of Grner Veltliner.  Very fine.

More costly, but certainly quite special is the 2003 Riesling Zobinger Heiligenstein.  I know this is more than most people will be able to remember, but we have only one of  Bründlmayer's Rieslings in the shop and this is it.  Wow!  Lovely.  Superb!  Deep fruit.  Some spice notes along with a floral quality.  Long on the palate.  Really intense and it's dry.  Perfect for Thai or Viet cuisine.  I suspect this will cellar handsomely, too.

Currently in stock:  2003 GRÜNER VELTLINER $19.99
2003 RIESLING ZOBINGER HEILIGENSTEIN $33.99 (750ml)  $18.99 (375ml)


Willi Bründlmayer shows off a bottle of his wine.

We also enjoy meeting Thomas Klingler, Bründlmayer's sales manager.

Bründlmayer makes a terrific sparkling wine, too.
Rather expensive, though, arriving here for about the price of a famous vintage Brut from Champagne....

T. FX. T. "ARACHON"

Three notable Austrians head up the "Arachon" project, the name being a medieval designation for the site called in the olden days "Horitschon."  The initials stand for the three musketeers (or muscateers, if you prefer), Tibor Szemes, Franz Xaver Pichler and Manfred Tement.  
They have arranged with 25 winegrowers, covering some 19 hectares.  Their idea for this Mittelburgenland  is to reduce yields in the vineyards (and they pay the growers considerably more per kilo than they'd get normally, of course) and make a wine of international quality.  
We first ran into this wine at dinner in a small, comfortable dining establishment in the Südsteiermark.  It was delicious!  The base of this blend features Blaufränkisch, with some help from Cabernet, Merlot and Zweigelt.  The wine is matured in new oak for a little more than a year.  

I saw it in the catalogue of a local distributor and attempted to order some.  I am probably one of two or three people in the area who have even half a clue about this wine, but it's "locked up" for special customers!
They finally deigned to part with a few bottles for the likes of us.  But we have not seen this wine for a few years now and have lost track of this property...
Stay tuned.

Currently in stock: 1999 "Evolutions" Sold Out

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Last modified:  September 2, 2010