GRUNER VELTLINER: AUSTRIA

Weingut Hutter Smaragd Gruner Veltliner
Austria: Wachau (Lower Austria)
Gruner Veltliner (white)
2006
88 pts
$15.99
Rocks and apples! That's the style here. Plus a little hint of vegetation (herbs). Has the all minerality I love in a Gruner but more of the herbal component than I've found in previous producers. For that reason, I find the Hutter GV interesting. The fruit definitely takes a back seat in the true Old World tradition, with even a hint of earthiness (almost a red-wine style mustiness) creeping into an already pretty complex taste profile. Color is pale yellow (not necessarily an attractive color to me...a bit urine-like, in fact). But the taste is well worth the somewhat awkward coloring. The nose reveals apples and stones and earth. An intriguing, tasty Austrian white...something different and original--and what's not to like about that? In the end, just a hint short of a MUST TRY for my palette (more rocks, less herbs, please), but still worth a try!

Mo-Velt Gruner Veltliner
Austria: Burgenland
Gruner Veltliner (white)
2008
80 pts
$8.99
Think of something you love, absolutely love. Could be a certain decadent chocolate, or your favorite Chicago pizza. Or maybe even your grandmother's homemade ravioli...or Mollie's Cupcakes? (tip: peach cobbler rocks for me, plain cupcake with buttercream frosting for Dana). Now, consider a cheap knockoff of the thing you love, seemingly market-tested to appeal to the widest possible audience, offending no one, and completely lacking the character, the substance, and the unique qualities (and quality) of the original. So it is with the Mo-Velt Gruner Veltliner, which drinks more like a Chenin Blanc than a Gruner. Lots of tart fruit (mostly citrus, a hint of apple skin), and while there is a bit of minerality on the dry finish, this one's not true to the character of GV, selling out the rocks for the fruit. With this wonderful and refreshing Austrian varietal, one should taste the stony, rocky limestone northeast of Vienna, at least as much as the fruit. But the Mo-Velt misses the mark: it's like lemon-lime Koolaid flavored with a single stone on the bottom. Not disgusting, mind you, but a bastardization of the varietal that offers nothing you can't easily get from grocery-store producers in California or Australia, probably for even less than $8.99. It's also named after Mozart (with related artwork on the label), which is odd, since ol' Wolfgang was from Salzburg, nowhere near the Mo-Velt winery in Burgenland (more than 200 km away). Perhaps some may argue this is an "entry level' Gruner, but IMO it just goes too far, to the point where one can't really even distinguish it from other varietals. Looking for love in all the wrong places...and not a wine I'll buy again.

+MUST TRY+
Johann Kattus Hochriegl Halbsüß
Austria: Vienna
Gruner Veltliner & Riesling Blend (white sparkling)
A Non-Vintage Wine
89 pts
$8.00
What an interesting little sparkler. Purchased a mini-bottle at the grocery store in Hallstatt's new town for about €2,00 when we were in Austria last summer, carried it home in the suitcase, and tasted it just yesterday, a rainy Saturday in Chicago, mid-September. The aroma of this wine is oaky and buttery, ala a New World Chardonnay, and yet there's no Chardonnay in this wine. As far as taste, I really like the Hochriegl: the minerality of the Gruner clearly comes through, especially on the mid-palette and finish, but there's a balance with fruit, too (delicate peach) that works for me. The fruit is the initial attack, while the transition to the minerals seems to pause (like mid-air slow motion) just long enough for some Old World funk to come through...also an unusual flavor for a white sparkler. As if that's not enough going on, there are also buttery oak undertones; I'm guessing the Riesling used in the blend spent some time in French oak? I've learned that this is a popular sparkling wine in Austria, and I can certainly see why: offers some nice complexity for about $8.00 US per regular-sized bottle. Alas, it doesn't look like this wine is available for purchase, however, in the States, although it is available in some countries of Europe beyond Austria. Because the flavor profile of this dry sparkling white is more mineral and funk than fruit, I'm not sure everyone will love this wine (although the hints of oak are nicely, subtly done). But it strikes the right balance for me, and it has an authenticity to it...tastes a little like Austria in a glass. If you're in the neighborhood (Vienna or Salzburg, let's say!), I think you should try this one. It sure won't break the bank.

Meinklang Gruner Veltliner
Austria: Burgenland (far eastern Austria, bordering Slovakia, Hungary and Slovenia)
Gruner Veltliner (white)
2008
82 pts
$12.99
Will cut to the chase on this one: tasteless for the vast majority of time this wine is in your mouth, followed by a quick pear-citrus combo, and then the lingering minerality common to the varietal on the finish. But in the case of the Meinklang Gruner Veltliner, while the length is very sound, the aftertaste--post finish, really--is not one I find pleasing. While I like the mouth feel--even picking up a hint of creaminess, perhaps?--the taste just doesn't come close to the potential Gruner Veltliner possesses. Interestingly, this is an organic wine, with the grapes grown sans chemical fertilizers, and the firm actually owns about 300 of its own angus cows, using the dung for fertilizer. Purchased this wine at Cellar Rat on North Avenue in Chicago, an interesting little shop that strives to introduce wine lovers to smaller family vineyards ("Corporate Wine Still Sucks" appears to be its motto). This isn't a terrible Gruner Veltliner, and I do understand that the biodynamic wines appeal to those seeking a more organic food and wine experience--and I've read one reviewer who thinks this wine shows better when paired with food--but to me, if it can't stand on its own merits in terms of taste, everything else is just spin. Will finish the bottle--because that's how I roll--but don't recommend this one, and won't buy it again.

Salomon Undhof Hochterrassen Gruner Veltliner (by Salomon Undhof)
Austria: Kremstal
Gruner Veltliner (white)
2009
85 pts
$14.99
This Austrian white has received very strong marks by distinguished critics for recent vintages—and Salomon is a respected producer of both Rieslings and Gruner Veltliners, with its vineyards split equally between these two varietals—but the 2009 I picked up at a wine shop on Linzergasse (in Salzburg’s new town) last month, to bring home and enjoy, while it has its strengths, it’s just not my cup of tea. On the plus side, this wine possesses a nice, smooth mouth feel (medium) and is loaded with the varietal’s characteristic citrus flavor (mostly lime, here). In addition, it finishes with the pleasant minerality that ties this fine Austrian grape neatly to its rocky limestone terroir. I also find the length on the wine slightly above average. However, this GV is just too damn tart for my palette, so tart in fact that I winced a few times, the way I would as a kid when consuming the intentionally turbo-tart offshoot of Sweet Tart candy. And while the fruit this wine offers could never be accused of being too discreet, in terms of balance, I find it a little heavy-handed, coming on too strong, at least for my tastes. As for bouquet, I found it to be tight, not revealing very much to pique interest. I can’t recommend the Salomom Undhoff Hochterrassen Gruner Veltliner, although it's not a terrible wine. I suspect those who enjoy the sensation of extreme tart would enjoy this wine, and it does possess some fine characteristics of the varietal. I also wonder if the bottle aged a bit, a few years, perhaps, if the fruit would calm down a little, and the tartness, too. That experiment might be worth the $15.00 US, but to buy to drink now, not so much.

+MUST TRY+
Fred Loimer Gruner Veltliner "Lois" (by Fred Loimer)
Austria: Kamptal Region (north-northeast of Krems)
Gruner Veltliner (white)
2008
90 pts
$10.99 (sale) - $13.99 (regular)
Two for two with Gru-Vee! The Loimer Gruner Veltliner Lois, for my palette, is a Must Try for four simple reasons: the balance this wine strikes between fruit and minerality is fascinating and delicious (mostly pear, some apple, and then heavy minerality on the back end); this crisp light-to-medium bodied Austrian white, with just a touch of sparkle, feels great in the mouth; the length of the Lois is outstanding; and at $11.00 to $14.00 a bottle, this is a great bargain. Tastes great, feels great, lasts long, affordable and multi-dimensional. I think it's a hair less satisfying than the Fass 4, rated below at 90+, but the Lois is also $3.00-$6.00 cheaper per bottle. This is a wonderful wine.

+MUST TRY+
Gruner Veltliner Fass 4 (by Wiengut Bernhard Ott)
Austria: Wagram (14 miles NE of Vienna)
Gruner Veltliner (white)
2007
90+ pts
$17.00
I ordered this Austrian white a few months before our first trip to Austria--let's call it legitimate research--from Gary Vaynerchuck's Wine Library for $16.98: Wow. Have had a few other Gruner Veltliners (a grape native to Austria, accounting for 37% of the total vineyards there), and while they've generally been pleasant and well-suited to food (light bodied, with very subtle hints of minerals and citrus), I've found them almost too subtle, nearly without taste. But this is most certainly not the case with the Fass 4 by Ott winery. This wine has a nice nose, a lot of tobacco, which I always enjoy (in wine, that is), along with the customary GV hint of citrus. And the taste profile is just wonderful. I get nice apple, along with pear, with a very pleasing undercurrent of tobacco, to match the nose. And it's a more full-bodied wine than the other GVs I've tasted. As for length...the pleasant taste (which finishes with some of the minerality common to the region) lingers for minutes after swallowing, almost making one salivate. This is a refreshing white wine great with or without food, with a delicious yet multi-faceted taste and an outstanding finish--all at a very reasonable price. This one's a MUST TRY for me, maybe even the white wine for summer 2010. Not at all surprised to see that Wine Library has added this one to its best summer wines under $25.00 promotion. Highly recommend you give the Gruner Veltliner Fass 4 by Bernhard Ott a try...and soon!