{"title":"Wachau","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Wachau, widely considered Austria's premier wine region, is a breathtakingly beautiful valley along the Danube River, renowned for its powerful and dry expressions of both Grüner Veltliner and Riesling. These two grapes are the stars here, producing wines that are typically full-bodied and structured, yet always maintain a signature Austrian freshness. The Wachau is unique in its own ripeness scale to categorize its wines: Steinfeder, a rarely seen lighter style, Federspiel, representing a balanced ripeness with vibrant acidity, and Smaragd, indicating riper, more exotic fruit, sometimes with a touch of botrytis depending on the producer's style. This region, with its steep, terraced vineyards and unique microclimates, is home to a concentration of Austria's very best producers, crafting wines that are benchmarks for both Grüner Veltliner and Riesling globally.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"alzinger-ried-loibenberg-riesling-smaragd-2024","title":"Alzinger Ried Loibenberg Riesling Smaragd 2024","description":"","brand":"Maverick Wine Company","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47605128757471,"sku":null,"price":78.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0439\/7436\/1248\/files\/PB220285.jpg?v=1763863680"},{"product_id":"franz-hirtzberger-gruner-veltliner-smaragd-rotes-tor-2023","title":"Franz Hirtzberger Riesling Singerriedel Smaragd 2023","description":"","brand":"Doug Krenik Selections","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48323744137439,"sku":null,"price":166.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0439\/7436\/1248\/files\/PC240545.jpg?v=1766627742"},{"product_id":"emerich-knoll-riesling-smaragd-ried-kellerberg-2022","title":"Emmerich Knoll Riesling Smaragd Ried Kellerberg 2022","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Land\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRied Kellerberg rises steeply above the village of Dürnstein and is widely considered one of the greatest vineyards in the Wachau, if not all of Austria. The site faces south to southeast between roughly 200 and 340 meters, built on hard Gföhl gneiss shot through with pockets of loess. That combination, primary rock for tension and minerality, loess for depth and flesh, is what makes Kellerberg wines so structured. Steep terraces, full southern sun, and cold night air rolling off the Danube give Riesling here both power and nerve. This is a Grand Cru site in everything but name.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Wine\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e100% Riesling at the Smaragd level, the ripest and most serious tier in the Vinea Wachau system, bottled fully dry. Fermented with ambient yeasts and raised in the traditional Wachau way in large old oak and stainless steel. Crushed stone and lime, wild mint, white peach and apricot, and a deep saline intensity that builds through a long, taut finish. This is a tightly coiled, powerful Riesling with a firm acid spine, the kind that can feel almost closed in its youth and unfolds over years. Patience pays: give it air now or cellar it for a decade or more. The 2022 vintage in the Wachau was warm and ripe while still holding good acidity, well suited to a site with Kellerberg's natural drive.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe People\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Knoll family has farmed the Loiben and Dürnstein villages since the early 1800s, working roughly 15 hectares in the Wachau's most celebrated sites, Kellerberg and Schütt among them. Led today by Emmerich Knoll, the estate bottles under the unmistakable baroque St. Urban label and belongs to Vinea Wachau, whose rules define the Steinfeder, Federspiel, and Smaragd categories. Knoll's wines are famously precise, mineral, and built for the long haul, and they sit at the top of collector and restaurant lists year after year. The family also runs the 400-year-old Loibnerhof restaurant nearby.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFood Pairing\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA serious Riesling for a serious plate. Roast chicken with herbs and lemon, seared scallops, pork schnitzel, or a rich Thai green curry where the wine's cut and stony depth balance the heat and coconut. It also stands up beautifully to smoked trout and aged Alpine cheese. Decant it, or cellar it and reach for it in ten years.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Old World","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50572332368095,"sku":null,"price":89.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0439\/7436\/1248\/files\/P7160693.jpg?v=1784262501"},{"product_id":"emerich-knoll-gruner-veltliner-federspiel-ried-trum-2024","title":"Emmerich Knoll Gruner Veltliner Federspiel Ried Trum 2024","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Land\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRied Trum lies in Loiben, on the north bank of the Danube in Austria's Wachau, where Knoll farms stone-terraced sites of gneiss and granite layered with glacial sediment. The vineyard has two faces: the upper section near the railway shares the hard primary rock of the famous Schütt vineyard, while the lower section is warmer alluvial loess. That mix of cool, mineral rock up top and richer soil below gives a Grüner Veltliner with both cut and flesh. The continental climate here, hot days and cold nights funneling down the river valley, is what lets the Wachau ripen fruit slowly while holding on to acidity.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Wine\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e100% Grüner Veltliner bottled as a Federspiel, the middle tier of the Vinea Wachau system: dry, between 11.5% and 12.5% alcohol, and made to be fresher and more immediate than the weightier Smaragd wines. Fermented with ambient yeasts and raised in the traditional Wachau way in large old oak and stainless steel. Green apple and white pear, that signature white pepper and fresh-herb snap, a squeeze of lime, and a clean, stony finish. This is Grüner in its most classic, food-ready register. The 2024 vintage was difficult across the Wachau, with April frost, a hot summer, and heavy September rain cutting yields by around a fifth; the upside was cool nights before an early harvest, which locked in bright acidity and aromatics, exactly what a Federspiel is built on.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe People\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Knoll family has farmed Unterloiben and the surrounding Loiben villages since the early 1800s, working roughly 15 hectares in some of the Wachau's greatest sites. Led today by Emmerich Knoll, the estate bottles under the unmistakable baroque St. Urban label and belongs to Vinea Wachau, whose rules define the Steinfeder, Federspiel, and Smaragd categories. Knoll's house style leans precise and mineral rather than showy, and even its everyday wines are built with the structure to age. The family also runs the 400-year-old Loibnerhof restaurant nearby.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFood Pairing\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA true all-purpose white. Pour it as an aperitif, or with a plate of prosciutto and cornichons, a herby roast chicken, fried calamari, or spring vegetables and asparagus. Grüner's white pepper and green edge make it one of the most versatile food wines around, and this one has the acidity to cut fried and creamy dishes alike.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Old World","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50572333711583,"sku":null,"price":62.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0439\/7436\/1248\/files\/P7160692.jpg?v=1784262483"},{"product_id":"emerich-knoll-gruner-veltliner-smaragd-ried-kreutles-2023","title":"Emmerich Knoll Gruner Veltliner Smaragd Ried Kreutles 2023","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Land\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRied Kreutles sits near the village of Unterloiben, in the heart of Austria's Wachau along a dramatic bend of the Danube. This is a south-facing parcel low on the slope, where deep sandy loess, dropped by ancient winds, sits over gneiss eroded out of the Alps by glaciers. That combination of warm, well-drained loess and hard primary rock is ideal for Grüner Veltliner, and the continental Wachau climate, hot days and sharply cooler nights off the river, gives the fruit both ripeness and tension. The vines here average around 25 years, old enough to dig deep and carry real concentration.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Wine\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e100% Grüner Veltliner at the Smaragd level, the ripest and most structured tier in the Vinea Wachau system, and always fully dry. Fermented with ambient yeasts and raised in a mix of large old oak casks and stainless steel in the traditional Wachau manner. Ripe yellow apple and pear, white pepper and green lentil spice, orchard-fruit depth, and a long, saline, gneiss-driven finish. Knoll's house style runs leaner and more precise than the plusher Pichler school of the valley, but a Kreutles Smaragd still carries genuine weight and richness underneath that cut. The 2023 vintage delivered healthy, ripe Grüner Veltliner with well-preserved acidity; late-October rains brought some botrytis pressure that Grüner, hardier than Riesling, largely shrugged off. Drink it now with air or cellar it for a decade.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe People\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Knoll family has farmed vineyards in Unterloiben since the early 1800s, and the estate now spans roughly 15 hectares across some of the Wachau's most storied sites. It is led by Emmerich Knoll, an outspoken champion of the region, and its wines are instantly recognizable by the baroque St. Urban label, named for the patron saint of winemakers. Knoll is a member of Vinea Wachau, the association that governs the Steinfeder, Federspiel, and Smaragd categories, and the family also runs the 400-year-old Loibnerhof restaurant nearby. The wines are made traditionally and built to age.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFood Pairing\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRich enough to anchor a real plate. Wiener schnitzel with lemon, roast pork belly with crackling, grilled halibut with brown butter and capers, or a creamy wild mushroom risotto. Grüner is also one of the few wines that genuinely loves asparagus and green vegetables. The white pepper bite and firm acidity keep everything fresh.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Old World","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50572334727391,"sku":null,"price":68.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0439\/7436\/1248\/files\/P7160691.jpg?v=1784262453"},{"product_id":"fx-pichler-gruner-veltliner-klostersatz-2024","title":"F.X. Pichler Grüner Veltliner Klostersatz 2024","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Land\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRied Klostersatz sits deep in the Loibner basin, on the inside of the Danube's great curve between Dürnstein and Oberloiben in Austria's Wachau. It is one of the oldest vineyards in the valley, cultivated centuries ago by monks from Bavarian and Salzburg monasteries. The soil here is unusually deep: fine sand on top, then rounded gravel carried down from the Alps and dropped by the river over millennia. Warm days and cold nights off the water give the Wachau its long, even ripening. Grüner Veltliner from this site runs to deep, spicy fruit with a gentle mineral thread rather than sharp tension.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Wine\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e100% Grüner Veltliner from the single Klostersatz vineyard, vinified dry with minimal intervention. Ripe yellow apple, pear, and honeydew, white pepper and green herb spice, a saline, gravelly finish with real weight behind it. F.X. Pichler built its name on rich, powerful whites, and in earlier decades that often meant a touch of botrytis; recent vintages stay ripe and concentrated but clean, with no botrytis character. One thing to know when reading the label: the estate left the Vinea Wachau association as of the 2020 vintage and no longer uses the Federspiel or Smaragd ripeness classifications, so this wine is named for its site alone. The 2024 growing season was hard across the Wachau, with April frost, a hot summer, and heavy September rain cutting volume by roughly a fifth; cool nights before an early harvest preserved acidity and aromatics.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe People\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eF.X. Pichler is in its seventh generation in Oberloiben. Franz Xaver Pichler shaped the estate's reputation in the 1980s, bottling richer, bolder Grüner Veltliner and Riesling when many Austrian growers turned to lean, light whites after the 1985 wine scandal. His son Lucas Franz Pichler now farms 20 hectares of steep single-vineyard sites across Loiben and Dürnstein, split roughly evenly between Grüner Veltliner and Riesling. The estate is certified organic (EU Bio, AT-Bio-402), certified vegan, and works with minimal intervention in the cellar. Leaving Vinea Wachau was a deliberate move to let each Ried, rather than a ripeness category, define the wine.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFood Pairing\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBuilt for the table. Wiener schnitzel with a squeeze of lemon, roast pork with caraway and braised root vegetables, pan-fried trout with brown butter and dill, or a plate of aged Gouda and Alpine cheeses. The white pepper spice and firm acidity cut cleanly through fried and fatty dishes, which is exactly what a Wachau Grüner Veltliner is for.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Doug Krenik Selections","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50572461703391,"sku":null,"price":50.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0439\/7436\/1248\/files\/P7160684.jpg?v=1784262353"},{"product_id":"josef-fischer-riesling-smaragd-ried-steiger-2021","title":"Josef Fischer Riesling Smaragd Ried Steiger 2021","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Land\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor most of the Wachau's history, the south bank of the Danube was the wrong side of the river. The celebrated sites sit on the north bank, where terraces tilt southward like solar panels and reach full phenolic ripeness even in cold years. Rossatz, where the Fischer family has farmed for centuries, faces the other way — north-facing slopes, gentler in grade, historically the slower ground. Two decades of warming have quietly inverted that logic. The south bank now ripens with more certainty than it once did, while some of the great sun-facing terraces across the water have begun to struggle for finesse. Ried Steiger lies close to the river on a gentle 29 percent incline, its soil rich in paragneiss and littered with crushed stone — poor, fast-draining ground, which is exactly what Riesling wants and why Grüner Veltliner gets the loess instead. The whole Wachau is barely twelve miles of river valley, and it holds more than 650 growers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Wine\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRiesling from a single parcel of roughly 25-year-old vines in Ried Steiger, picked at Smaragd ripeness. Smaragd is the top tier of the Codex Wachau, the self-imposed classification the growers of Vinea Wachau Nobilis Districtus wrote for themselves in 1983; it demands at least 12.5 percent alcohol from naturally ripened fruit, and it takes its name from the emerald-green lizards that sun themselves on the terrace walls. Fischer ferments spontaneously in a battalion of small tanks so each parcel stays separate, then rests the wine the better part of a year on its fine lees in stainless steel with minimal sulfur. Malolactic is not blocked, and at Smaragd level it nearly always goes through. The importer lists less than a gram per liter of residual sugar. Green apple and small white flowers on the nose, a murmuring stoniness beneath, then smoky earth and a chalky texture under tight-grained fruit and acid — the finish cool, saline and unusually long for the price. 2021 handed Austria a late, patient season: cool spring, late budbreak that dodged frost, a stormy July and August, then a dry September of warm days and steadily colder nights that pushed picking deep into autumn. Lower alcohols, higher acid, more lift.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe People\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe winery traces to 1898. Today Josef Fischer — Joe, to distinguish him from his father, also Josef — is the fifth generation, working eleven hectares of Grüner Veltliner and Riesling across several of Rossatz's best sites. Very few Wachau growers farm organically, because terraced hillsides make every task manual and the extra labor is punishing; Joe uses no synthetic chemicals at all, and the estate is certified organic. He got that conviction from his father, who has spent decades on a passion project breeding the Huchen, the near-extinct Danube salmon once reserved for the Habsburgs, and returning them to the river. The fish on the front label is a nod to that work. A few years ago Joe finished a new cellar designed for restraint rather than muscle, and his wines have followed: concentrated, but built around acidity and salinity rather than weight.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFood Pairing\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eRoasted Salmon with Lemon Brown Butter, Crispy Potatoes \u0026amp; Horseradish Crème Fraîche\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThis powerful, dry Wachau Riesling has the concentration and texture for rich salmon and nutty brown butter, while its acidity keeps everything fresh. Lemon, dill and horseradish add brightness and bring the pairing together. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFind the full recipe on our blog.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Natural","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51319566008543,"sku":null,"price":30.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0439\/7436\/1248\/files\/P9030254.jpg?v=1788538495"},{"product_id":"veyder-malberg-gruner-veltliner-weissenkirchner-weitenberg-2022","title":"Veyder-Malberg Gruner Veltliner Weissenkirchner Weitenberg 2022","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Land\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn the Wachau, Grüner Veltliner usually gets the lower, flatter ground on deep loess, while Riesling takes the rocky terraces above. Weitenberg breaks the pattern. This vineyard northwest of Weissenkirchen is a set of steep south- to southwest-facing stone terraces at about 320 meters, on orthogneiss and mica schist, the same hard rock that usually carries the valley's best Rieslings. Grüner Veltliner rooted in rock rather than loess gives up some of its trademark white pepper and gains a firm, stony cut. The terraces sit above the Danube in the middle of the valley, warm enough by day to ripen the grape fully, with cool nights coming off the forested hills behind. This is Grüner Veltliner from the Wachau built on structure rather than weight.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Wine\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Veyder-Malberg Grüner Veltliner Weissenkirchner Weitenberg 2022 is 100 percent Grüner Veltliner from vines planted in the early 1950s from an old massal selection. The grapes macerate on their skins for up to 24 hours, then press slowly over six to eight hours, settle a day and ferment spontaneously at up to 24°C. Unlike the estate's Rieslings, Weitenberg goes through malolactic, and the wine ages nine months, until spring, in an old 1,500-liter Stockinger cask. Malolactic and big neutral wood give it a creamier middle with no oak flavor. Expect ripe pear, lemon peel and yellow apple, with crushed rock and a faint green-herb lift, then a dense, dry body and a long finish of wet stone and citrus pith. 2022 brought a hot, dry July and early August, then a wet September with high rot pressure in Grüner Veltliner, and the wines show lower alcohol and good acidity.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe People\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNowhere on a Veyder-Malberg label will you find the words Steinfeder, Federspiel or Smaragd. Those are the Vinea Wachau association's ripeness categories, and they rank wines by must weight and alcohol. Peter Veyder-Malberg works outside that system. \"I don't believe that higher sugar levels mean higher quality,\" he has said, and he names his wines after the vineyards instead. He picks early, often ahead of his neighbors, judging ripeness by tasting the seeds rather than reading a refractometer. Before founding his Spitz estate in 2008 he spent 14 years running the vineyards and cellar at Graf Hardegg in the Weinviertel. Today he farms a patchwork of old hand-worked terraces organically and without irrigation, and Weitenberg, with the oldest vines he owns, is the Grüner Veltliner that makes his case best.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFood Pairing\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePour it around 50 to 54 degrees. Grüner Veltliner and asparagus is a classic pairing, so try white asparagus with boiled potatoes, ham and a lemony hollandaise; the wine's acidity cuts the sauce and its herbal edge meets the vegetable. Chicken paprikash with buttered noodles works because the creamy texture matches the sauce while the stony finish keeps it fresh. Try salmon crudo with lime, olive oil and flaky salt, where the citrus-pith finish meets the fish. This is the Grüner to pour when someone tells you the grape only makes simple wine.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Old World","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":67932249161951,"sku":null,"price":82.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0439\/7436\/1248\/files\/PA080498.jpg?v=1791502415"},{"product_id":"veyder-malberg-riesling-buschenberg-2022","title":"Veyder-Malberg Riesling Buschenberg 2022","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Land\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAsk most Wachau fans about Weissenkirchen Riesling and they will name Achleiten or Klaus. Buschenberg sits directly beside Klaus and has spent decades in its shadow. It is a band of very steep south- to southeast-facing terraces on the Danube's left bank at 330 to 430 meters, in the warmer middle stretch of the valley. Bedrock and topsoil are mica schist, a flaky, quick-draining rock that keeps yields low and pushes the roots deep. The river reflects heat back onto the terraces by day, and cool air drains down from the forest above at night. That gives this Riesling from the Wachau more ripeness than the estate's cold Spitzer Graben sites while keeping a firm mineral spine.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Wine\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Veyder-Malberg Riesling Buschenberg 2022 is 100 percent Riesling from vines planted in 1979. The grapes macerate on their skins for up to 24 hours, less in ripe years, then press over six to eight hours and settle for a day before a spontaneous fermentation that peaks at 24°C. Cold cellar temperatures block malolactic. The wine ages nine months, mostly in old 640-liter acacia barrels from the Austrian cooper Stockinger, and is filtered but not fined, with the first sulfur added at bottling. Acacia rounds the texture without adding oak flavor. Expect ripe white peach, lime zest and quince, crushed stone and a touch of smoke, then a dry, firm body and a long, salty finish. 2022 brought a scorching July and early August, then a wet September that demanded strict sorting, and the wines are lower in alcohol with good acidity.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe People\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePeter Veyder-Malberg came to wine late. He worked as an art director at an advertising agency until the corporate life wore thin, then left for Napa, working the 1991 harvest at Pine Ridge and taking night classes at Napa Valley College. Back in Austria in 1993 he started as a cellar worker at Graf Hardegg in the Weinviertel and stayed 14 years, becoming its winemaker and converting the estate to biodynamics from the 2005 vintage. In 2008, in his late forties, he founded his own estate in Spitz in a converted former slaughterhouse, buying up old hand-worked terraces scattered along the valley. He farms organically, without irrigation, and has long judged ripeness by tasting seeds rather than chasing sugar readings.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFood Pairing\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eServe around 52 to 55 degrees, and decant it for an hour if you open it young. Seared scallops with brown butter and a little lemon zest suit its ripe peach and firm acidity. Roast pork loin with apples and caraway, the Austrian Sunday dinner, works because the acid cuts the fat and the fruit meets the apples. Try spicy Sichuan green beans with ground pork, where the wine's cool fruit calms the chili. A wedge of aged Comté or Bergkäse with walnuts plays against the salty finish. This is a Riesling for the dinner you plan days ahead, and it will reward a few more years in your cellar.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Old World","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":67932249293023,"sku":null,"price":110.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0439\/7436\/1248\/files\/PA080497.jpg?v=1791502415"},{"product_id":"veyder-malberg-riesling-elsarner-brandstatter-2022","title":"Veyder-Malberg Riesling Elsarner Brandstatter 2022","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Land\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eElsarn sits so far up the Spitzer Graben that it belongs to the municipality of Mühldorf, not Spitz. The Spitzer Graben is the side valley that climbs west from the Danube at Spitz, and it is the coldest corner of the Wachau. Ried Brandstatt faces due south on very steep, narrow stone terraces at 440 to 480 meters, well above the valley floor. Bedrock and topsoil are both mica schist, thin and fast-draining, so the vines struggle and the berries stay small. Riesling from the Wachau at this altitude trades the stone-fruit richness of the riverside crus for tension, cut and a cool, stony edge.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Wine\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Veyder-Malberg Riesling Elsarner Brandstatt 2022 is 100 percent Riesling, hand-harvested. The grapes macerate on their skins for up to 24 hours, with less time for riper lots, then press slowly over six to eight hours and settle in tank for a day. Fermentation starts on its own and peaks at 24°C. Low cellar temperatures block malolactic, which keeps the acidity sharp, and the wine rests six to eight months in old 300-liter oak barrels, then is filtered but not fined, with the first sulfur added at bottling. Expect lime and green apple, crushed slate, white flowers and a little fresh herb, then a taut, lean body that tastes of wet stone and a long, saline, citrus-pith finish. In 2022 a hot, dry July and early August gave way to a wet September, and late-October rain brought botrytis that cut Riesling yields in the western Wachau. The wines are lower in alcohol with good acidity.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe People\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePeter Veyder-Malberg calls Brandstatt his recultivation project. When he founded his estate in Spitz in 2008, his plan was to take on old Wachau terraces that no machine can work and that older growers were giving up. Brandstatt was one of them. Its vines date to 1979, but the dry-stone walls had collapsed and the site had gone to neglect. He rebuilt the terraces in 2009 by hand and filled the gaps with cuttings from his own Buschenberg vines in Weissenkirchen. Every parcel he owns is worked by hand, and his bottles carry a small \"Handarbeit\" neck label to say so. The vineyards are farmed organically and without irrigation. Brandstatt is the clearest picture of what the estate exists to do: save a terrace that would otherwise have gone back to forest.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFood Pairing\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eServe it cool, around 50 to 54 degrees, and give it some air. Pan-fried trout with brown butter, capers and parsley is the local match; the acidity cuts the butter while the stony finish meets the fish. Wiener schnitzel with a squeeze of lemon and a cucumber-dill salad works because the wine scrubs the fried crust clean. Thai green papaya salad with lime, fish sauce and peanuts takes on the citrus and salt directly. Try a goat cheese and leek tart, where the bright acid lifts the tang of the cheese. This is the bottle to open when you want to taste exactly where a wine comes from.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Old World","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":67932249850079,"sku":null,"price":110.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0439\/7436\/1248\/files\/PA080496.jpg?v=1791502415"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0439\/7436\/1248\/collections\/drcmontrachet_httpss.mj.runN4XcZVz6NS4_a_river_bend_in_the_wa_75e22706-1616-45e6-bb0b-641b9529deea_0.png?v=1739207394","url":"https:\/\/danverwinemerchant.com\/collections\/wachau.oembed","provider":"Denver Wine Merchant","version":"1.0","type":"link"}