Pale Fire Part II – Riesling

My previous post from April 23rd was the first of two about a recent trip to Austria. In it, I focused on Grüner Veltliner and favorite wines tasted during the trip. In this second and concluding installment, the focus shifts to Riesling.

Stephen Brooks’ The Wines of Austria is widely considered to be one of the seminal works on the subject. In writing about Austrian Riesling, Brooks offers the following:

“It is odd that this hugely admired variety is not that widely planted in Austria, with only 1,986 hectares under vine (4,905 acres). The explanation is not surprising. It does not thrive in very warm areas, so is difficult to grow in area such as Burgenland or Carnuntum. In some parts of Lower Austria, loess soils dominate, and these are not ideal for Riesling, so Grüner Veltliner tends to be planted in such soils.”

Brooks further writes that Riesling needs “primary rock” to thrive where heat can be reflected back on to the vines. The variety also requires good exposure so is limited to top sites in Kremstal, Kamptal, and the Wachau. In addition, wines from Kremstal and Kamptal tend to be marginally richer than those from the Wachau. Finally, Brooks offers that “at their finest, Austrian Rieslings, almost always vinified as dry wines, are as distinguished as any examples from other countries.”

A thought about the previous—my perennial question of how Austrian Rieslings differ from their counterparts in Germany and Alsace was answered during the first appointment in the Wachau by winemaker Emmerich Knoll. As we tasted through his superb lineup of wines, Knoll mentioned that he thought Austrian Rieslings worked better with food than similar wines from Germany and France. When questioned, he said that he and other winemakers deliberately chose to ferment their wines several degrees warmer (in Celsius) than typical. In doing so, the aromatics wouldn’t be so effusive and what he called a “distraction” to the food on the plate.

I thought about Knoll’s explanation for the style of Austrian Riesling in general and it fit. To me the wines have always been understated on the nose, showing their stuff on the palate. By contrast, young German Riesling was significantly showier on the nose. Beyond that, a bit of an editorial. For me, Riesling is capable of making profound wine in more places than any other white grape. I can already hear the grumbling about Chardonay and great White Burgundy. And I would be the first to agree. But outside of Chablis and the Cote de Beaune, Chardonnay does well in various locales but doesn’t tip the great wine scale often. Riesling does and in a multitude of places including Germany, Austria, Alsace, and Australia. I also think Riesling translates site/place/terroir as well or better than any other white grape. Regardless of style, it’s a transparent wine and a chameleon in food and wine pairing in that it works with almost anything save red meat.

General notes

At every winery, the Rieslings were poured after Grüner Veltliners because of the higher acidity levels in the former. If the tasting had been reversed, odds are the Grüner Veltliners would have tasted flat and lacking acidity. The progression worked, and here are some general thoughts about the Rieslings we tasted.

Riesling needs less water in the vineyard than Grüner Veltliner.
The best wines were made from fruit grown on terraced rocky soils of gneiss, granite, and limestone.
As noted, because of warmer fermentation temps, the wines weren’t as expressive on the nose compared to dry wines from Germany and Alsace.
Thus the nose of Austrian Riesling tends to speak and not shout.
I rarely encountered the TDN/petrol/fusel notes in the wines. Perhaps the result of a cooler climate with a longer growing season.
The wines tended to be spot on varietally, with a single bottling offering fruit in all five categories (orchard, citrus, stone, tropical, and melon).
Floral, light spice, and lemony-herbal notes were the most common non-fruit notes.
The wines tended to be mineral-driven and not earthy. Of course, there were exceptions.
Alcohol levels were generally at medium (12-13%) with Smaragd wines marginally higher.
Acidity levels were high across the board
Larger neutral casks or stainless steel are commonly used for fermentation.

Favorite Rieslings

*A quick reminder about the series of numbers included with each tasting note. In lieu of the 100-point scoring system, which I consider the equivalent of reality TV in wine, I use a system devised by good friend Peter Granoff, MS. The system consists of seven criteria: intensity of flavor, dryness/sweetness, body, acidity, tannin, oak, and complexity. Further, these seven criteria are represented in one-through-seven increments, with the number one representing least/none and the number seven the most or maximum.

Hirtzberger – Wachau

2024 Riesling Smaragd Setzberg

Fuji, mango, kiwi, white peach, and lime with white floral and mineral. The fruit is very pure with pronounced mineral and bracing acidity.

5/1/4/6/1/1/5

2024 Riesling Smaragd Steinporz

Tropical with pineapple, mango, and lime. Also, honey, apple blossom-floral, and mineral. Sleeker but the palate is consistent with the previous wines in style. Remarkably long for such a young wine. Easily 20 years.

6/1/5/6/1/1/5-6

2024 Riesling Singerriedel Smaragd

Mandarin, quince, apricot, tropical, and rose with wet stone. Ripe and very pure fruit with pronounced minerality and bracing acidity.

5/1/5/6/1/1/6

Emmerich Knoll – Wachau

2023 Riesling Ried Loibner Smaragd

Shows a touch of botrytis with mandarin, honey, white peach, and mineral. Tarter on the palate than expected.

5/1/4/6/1/1/5

2023 Riesling Ried Kellerberg Smaragd

White peach/nectarine, lime, and mineral. Rich mid-palate from lees contact. Tightly wound and young, but still approachable. Easily 20 years in the cellar.

5/1/4/6/1/1/5

2023 Riesling Ried Schutt Smaragd

Elder flower, tart citrus, underripe stone fruit, lemon/lime, and mineral. Much fuller palate than expected, but tightly wound and very minerally. Long and persistent. 20 years.

5/1/4/6/1/1/6

2009 Riesling Loibenberg Smaragd

TDN on the nose for the first time as well as preserved lemon, crystalized honey, dried apple, and mineral. Long, focused, and precise.

5/1/4/6/1/1/6

Rudi Pichler – Wachau

2023 Riesling Smaragd Kirchweg

Fresh and vibrant with lime, white peach, and Pippin apple with white floral and mineral. Density—dry extract; young and tightly wound but balanced and long.

5/1/4/6/1/1/5

2023 Riesling Smaragd Hochrain

Almost smells toasty from lees contact. Otherwise, green apple, white peach, white floral, slight spice, and mineral. More compact than the previous with pronounced mineral in the mid-palate and high acidity.

5/1/4/6/1/1/6

2023 Riesling Smaragd Achleiten

Smells toasty again from lees. Stone fruit, mandarin lime, and mineral. The richest of the three Smaragd wines with considerable density/dry extract. Long and persistent.

5/1/4/6/1/1/6

2016 Riesling Smaragd Achleiten

TDN for one of the few times of the entire trip; stone fruit marmalade with dried apple, preserved citrus, dried floral, and mineral. Dense and focused but not heavy.

5/1/4/6/1/1/7

2013 Riesling Smaragd Achleiten

Candle wax and slight TDN with dried and preserved fruit, dried floral, and slight spice. Again, rich and weighty from dry extract, but not heavy. Pronounced mineral and high acidity. Layered and very complex.

5/1/4/6/1/1/7

Brundlmayer – Kamptal

2023 Riesling Heiligenstein Erste Lage

White peach, Pippin apple, citrus blossom, and mineral. Richer than expected with pronounced minerality and high acidity dominating the finish.

5/1/4/6/1/1/5

2015 Riesling Alte Reben Heiligenstein Erste Lage

Dried floral, orchard fruit, tart citrus, mushroom, and mineral. Weightless and concentrated, but not heavy.

5/1/4/6/1/1/7

2012 Riesling Steinmassl Erste Lage

Almost unctuous but completely dry. Otherwise, a remarkably complex wine. Superb.

5/1/4/6/1/1/7

Schloss Gobelsburg – Kamptal

2023 Riesling Ried Gaisberg, DAC

Green pear, white peach, lime, citrus blossom, and stone. Young and compact with minerality and tart acidity dominating the palate. Saline-like finish.

5/1/4/6/1/1/6

2017 Riesling Heiligenstein DAC

Bruised orchard fruit, preserved citrus, dried flowers, and pronounced mineral. Seamless, layered, and complex. Long and persistent.

5/1/4/6/1/1/6+