Special Report: Wines of Austria – The Tension of Opposites

By Michael Godel

November Niederösterreich visits with producers in Wagram and Traisental, plus a Toronto Masterclass

_{Sunset over Niederösterreich}

Life is a series of movements, from pillar to post and decision making often culminates in negative results. Every day there are deliberations, shuttles and bargaining for positivity, all inherently matters of the human condition, experienced through the tension of opposites, simply because choices made more often than not feel diametrically opposed to one another in some unavoidable way. This is one of Carl Jung’s foundational precepts and while it is often a source of frustration and confusion, for grapes and the wines they create it can be the source of greatest joy. A vine planted in poor soils and subjected to the tensity of elements may succeed but it must find a way to suffer through the strain and pressure. Jung noted that in fact it can be a necessary pre-condition (in the case of people) for real transformation to occur. Antithetically speaking grapevines are not human and nature is exceedingly if also impressively resourceful. Roots dig deeper in search of nutrients, the plant stretches and adapts, learns to embrace the tension of opposites and in turn grows stronger. Wine lovers know the feeling, of tasting that which was raised on terroirs where the vine struggle is real, survival is the necessity and the wine results are pure glory.

Which brings us directly to Austria, where incidentally I visited, albeit briefly, back in late November of 2022. It was there that this theory was brought to light. Extreme climate, gradience and geology can lead and convince a vine to beat the odds, case in point examples from near and far. Places such as the Côtes d’Or, Rangen de Thann, Radda in Chianti, The Mosel, Salta, Lanzarote, Camargue, Bekka Valley, Santorini, Aosta Valley, Patagonia, Ahr Valley, Prince Edward County, Hunter Valley, Annapolis Valley, Lamole and Limarí Valley: just to name a large handful! Let us add Austria to the list, Lower Austria that is (Niederösterreich) and more specifically the Wagram and the Traisental. Three aspects determine the viability for these two growing areas to qualify as those where the experience concerns the tension of opposites. Cool climate, poor soils and windswept ridges. Stand atop any one of these spots in late November, feel the chill drill straight down into your bones and know just what a vine must do to not only survive, but also thrive.

_{Kirchberg am Wagram}

Wagram

In the Wagram the vineyards are divided between two distinct zones. The first is north of the Danube, directly to the east of the Kamptal where a vast terrace of land stretches eastwards for approximately 30 kilometres. The second zone runs south of the Danube, home to the small wine villages of the Tulln Basin, as well as the historic wine-growing town of Klosterneuburg which is just a stone’s throw away from Vienna. There are 250 wineries in the Wagram, 2,459 hectares under vine and the three principal grape varieties are grüner veltliner, riesling and roter veltliner. The main viticultural villages are Feuersbrunn, Fels, Grossriedenthal, Gösing, Kirchberg, Großweikersdorf and Klosterneuburg.

It’s really all about rich, aromatic wines. The name Wagram is derived from the word Wogenrain, roughly translated as “surfside.” This is because the substratum of alluvial gravels and sedimentary marine deposits is covered by loess, blown in during the ice ages and has since played a significant role in shaping the landscape. From the 2021 vintage onwards, regionally typical wines can be labelled as Wagram DAC. The top tier of the pyramid is represented by the region’s Riedenwein (single-vineyard wines) and here is where grüner veltliner, riesling and roter veltliner truly shine. Moving down from the Ried there are the Ortsweine or Villages wines that can also include chardonnay, weißburgunder, blauburgunder, and zweigelt. Finally there are the Gebietsweine, monovarietal, as a cuvée blend or Gemischter Satz (field blend)). The above mentiioned grape varieties are joined by frühroter veltliner, grauer burgunder, gelber muskateller, sauvignon blanc and traminer.

_{Godello and Traisental Geology}

Traisental

The Traisental is the youngest wine-growing region in Austria, only dating back to 1995 in the way we know it today with their corresponding DACs having been cemented in 2006. Of all the Austrian DACs it is one of the smallest with a shade over 800 hectares under vine. Nowhere does grüner veltliner lead as it does in Traisental, relatively speaking, where nearly two-thirds of all vineyards are planted to the signature Austrian white grape variety. Also riesling which holds great importance and perhaps increasingly so. The growing areas are tied to the villages and their signature taverns where these wines flow and also revered. Two such places are Traismauer and Herzogenburg, towns with windows into the past. Smallest of terraces are where vines grow on gravelly and often calcareous soils. Weather can be extreme, especially winds, of Pannonian influences along with cold air from the foothills of the Alps. The nearby Danube River balances temperature and day/night fluctuations. Wine culture dates back to the Romans and modern times place most importance on grüner veltliner and riesling though there are smatterings of other varieties in white and red, namely pinot blanc and noir.

Ten million years ago the Traisen river ran through what is now the Traisental Valley, a growing area so apropos to talk about tension of opposites. The limestone conglomerate and poor soils south of the Danube house a mere 25 producers plus growers and their focus on grüner veltliner and riesling is all about making magic where vines suffer before begetting incredible fruit. The vineyards are planted up to 380m and what was once a four to five kilometre wide river is now just 100-150 metres across at its widest. The build up from 10,000 years of humus is such that now if you screw up your soil it can takes decades to build it back up again. And so growers like Markus Huber have certified organic but are not content with just the rules, but concern themselves with always being one step ahead. Producers have to be open for things available on the markets, especially preparations, like Trichoderma and other microorganisms used against downy mildew. Huber remarks how herb extracts applied over the last five years have led to very good results.

The Art of Wine – Down to Earth

A two-part expression replete with two ways to look at Austrian wine. From Styria, the Burgenland and Vienna in Lower Austria there are 17 DACs from a bit less than 45,000 hectares of planted vineyard. They speak collectively in a typically Austrian vernacular and with a connectivity as real and transparent as any wine producing nation in Europe. Draw a line through the village of Saint Pölten from the Traisental to the Wagram and a most specific association is forged, by geography, geology and climatic patterns. There are recurring characteristics in the grüner veltliner and riesling throughout these two DAC wines and in turn their relatedness to Niederösterreich as a whole is forged through the lands on either side of the Danube.

In November of 2022 our small group of four spent two and a half days wandering these two Lower Austrian wine regions with the chaperone assistance of Matthias and Wines of Austria. We also spent two evenings in Vienna, one at dinner with Zahel’s Alex Zahel and another at the Wiener Rathaus as our colleague John Szabo, M.S. received Wines of Austria’s most prestigious International Bacchus Award for his two decades of commitment in writing about and educating on behalf of Austrian wines. Our visits in Wagram and Traisental took us to Domaine Ott, Weinmanufaktur Clemens Strobl, Dockner Tom, Jurtschitsch, Markus Huber, Matthias Warnung and Weinkultur Preiß. Just before flying to Europe John and Roman Horvath MW had delivered a November 9th masterclass in Toronto on Austrian wines and those notes are also included in this report. In total I share 90 tasting notes with you.

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Domaine Ott – Feuersbrunn, Wagram

Bernhard Ott is a fourth generation winemaker, at the helm since 1993 for an estate dating back to 1889. Ott farms and bottles from 32 different plots, including three prized premium sites, one in Kamptal (Engabrunner Stein) and two in Wagram (Feuersbrunner Spiegel and Rosenberg). Bernhard’s initial goal was to make use of stainless steel though in 2018 he began working with varying sizes of Stockinger fuders. These traditional Mosel casks literally translate to a “wagonload, cartload; A unit of measure for wine equal to roughly 1000 litres.” In total there are 55 hectares and it was after tasting a 1933 Rosenberg GV that Ott decided to go back to his roots, to what his grandfather would have been doing and moved to basket press. The first to do so with white wine. In the early 2000s Bernhard began composting, with organic cow manure, became certified organic in 2006 and later visited the biodynamic property of Domaine La Romanée Conti in Vosne with Hans Reisetbauer. This was the impetus towards committing to biodynamic viticulture. He formed Respekt in 2007 with Johannes Hirsch, Fred Loimer and a group of like-minded producers, Respekt was formed. The oldest vines in the Rosenberg were planted in 1954 in very deep loess soil. Stein is Gföhler gneiss at the bottom, with red and white sands, a layer of chalk and a little loess on top. At Spiegel the soils are a mix of deep, chalky loess and red gravel, part Rosenberg and part Stein. Most of the production is grüner veltliner with 10 percent riesling.

Bernhard Ott Grüner Veltliner Am Berg 2021, Lower Austria

Bernhard Ott Grüner Veltliner Fass 4 2021, Wagram

Bernhard Ott Grüner Veltliner Ried Spiegel Feuersbrunn 1ÖTW 2020, Wagram

Bernhard Ott Grüner Veltliner Ried Stein Engabrunn 1ÖTW 2020, Kamptal

Bernhard Ott Gruner Veltliner Ried Rosenberg Feuersbrunn 1ÖTW 2020, Wagram

Bernhard Ott Grüner Veltliner Ried Kirchtal 2020, Wagram

Bernhard Ott Grüner Veltliner Der Ott 2021, Wagram

Bernhard Ott Grüner Veltliner Ried Gmirk 2021, Wagram

Bernhard Ott Grüner Veltliner Ried Brenner 2021, Wagram

Bernhard Ott Riesling Ried Kirchthal 2021, Wagram

Bernhard Ott Riesling Kabin(O)TT 2021, Lower Austria

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Weinmanufaktur Clemens Strobl – Kirchberg am Wagram

Clemens Strobl is a second generation family-owned winery started in 2008, led by Clemens and son Lukas. They started with one hectare, “wanting to know what is behind winemaking.” Today there are 15 hectares, mostly terraced above the winery. The 2012 vintage was the first to make use of native yeasts and the beginning of a conversation towards organics. They are self-professed “unbound to tradition” and so there are no appellations on the wines. Experimentation is key, yet also with winemaking ideas in the skin-contact, unfined, unfiltered and minimal sulphuring realm. They may be uncomfortable to be tagged as makers of natural wine but their actions speak for themsleves. For Clemens and Strobl wine is directly connected to soil and this means loess. Metres of loam and loess, tertiary gravel dating back millions of years. Theirs is “the region of the future.” Burgundian conditions, of loess and limestones, expressly Wagram.

Clemens Strobl Donauschotter Grüner Veltliner 2021

Clemens Strobl Grüner Veltliner Schrek 2019

Clemens Strobl Lössling Grüner Veltliner 2019

Lust By Lukas Strobl Lust & Laune 2021, Wagram

Clemens Strobl Donauschotter Riesling 2021

Clemens Strobl Rosen Riesling 2019

Clemens Strobl Riesling Pfaff 2019, Kremstal

Clemens Strobl Donauschotter Rosé 2021

Clemens Strobl Pinot Noir Hengst 2019, Wagram

Lust Lukas Strobl Etretat 2020

Lust Lukas Strobl Elafonisi 2020

Lust Lukas Strobl Ureki 2019

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Dockner Tom – Thayern

The winery dates back to 1912 while the house is 580 years old. Dockner is a producer with a large and well-rounded portfolio, bottling regional, village, single-vineyard and 1ÖTW premium vineyard classified wines. The Dockner family have been vintners in Theyern for four generations and Tom credits his father for teaching him a great deal. His pursuit of quality and sustainable cultivation is integral to the family’s estate. Ried Theyerner Berg, Pletzengraben and Hochschopf are the most important sites, especially for grüner veltliner while riesling also thrives at Parapluiberg Mountain.

Dockner Tom Grüner Veltliner Tom 2021, Traisental DAC

Dockner Tom Grüner Veltliner Nussdorf 2021, Traisental DAC

Dockner Tom Grüner Veltliner Ried Theyerner Berg 2021, Traisental DAC

Dockner Tom Grüner Veltliner Ried Pletzengraben 1ÖTW 2021, Traisental DAC

Dockner Tom Grüner Veltliner Ried Hochschopf 1ÖTW 2021, Traisental DAC

Dockner Tom Grüner Veltliner Ried Hochschopf 1ÖTW 2013, Traisental DAC

Dockner Tom Grüner Veltliner Ried Hochschopf 1ÖTW 2010, Traisental DAC

Dockner Tom Riesling Ried Parapluiberg 2021, Traisental DAC

Dockner Tom Riesling Ried Pletzengraben 1ÖTW 2021, Traisental DAC

Dockner Tom Riesling Ried Pletzengraben 1ÖTW 2017, Traisental DAC

Dockner Tom Riesling Ried Pletzengraben 1ÖTW 2016, Traisental DAC

Dockner Tom Traminer Konglomerat 2021, Traisental DAC

Dockner Tom Traminer Konglomerat 20007, Traisental DAC

Dockner Tom Gelber Traminer Natur 2021

Dockner Tom Pinot Noir Konglomerat 2019

Dockner Tom Pinot Noir Konglomerat 2008

_Jurtschitsch

Jurtschitsch – Langenlois

Alwin Jurtschitsch and Stephanie Hasselbach (formerly of Gunderloch in the Rheinhessen) have been working the vineyards since 2006 and immediately began transforming to organic back then. Their wines are a combination of old style classics and the new natural, loyal to grandparents while simultaneously focused on a new generation of wine drinkers. There are Pét-Nats and bottles made by skin-contact, unfined, unsulphured and unfiltered. There are also 1ÖTW premium site grüner veltliner and riesling in the tradition of modern day Wagram. Some wines are labeled Jurtschitsch while others carry the name of Alwin und Stefanie Jurtschitsch or Weingut Fuchs Und Hase.

Weingut Fuchs Und Hase Pet Nat Vol 3

Jurtschitsch Grüner Veltliner Ried Lamm 1ÖTW 2020, Kamptal

Jurtschitsch Grüner Veltliner Ried Kaferberg 1ÖTW 2020, Kamptal

Jurtschitsch Grüner Veltliner Ried Loisenberg 1ÖTW 2021, Kamptal

Jurtschitsch Grüner Veltliner Amour Fou Natural Wine Trocken 2020, Kamptal

Jurtschitsch Riesling Heligenstein 1ÖTW Alte Reben 2020, Kamptal

Jurtschitsch Riesling Quelle 2019

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Markus Huber – Reichersdorf, Traisental

The vineyards are cultivated according to organic guidelines and the entire winery is certified according to the “Sustainable Austria” criteria. Markus Huber tries to improve biodiversity by sowing plants that are favourable to vines, keeping bushes, trees and hedges around the vineyards and by using animals and beneficial organisms. All these measures come together to result in better soil quality and increased vine health – and, ultimately, in expressive and authentic wines typical of the region. The vines are mainly planted on terraces – some of them quite minuscule – comprised of dry and very limy gravel soils. The Traisental valley is the only wine producing region of lower Austria where a most important limestone soil type can be found. Huber is the spearhead for the Österreichischen Traditionsweingüter, and organization of vintners from the Danube areas in Kremstal and Kamptal with the intention to identify and understand the diverse soils, the microclimate of the different vineyards and the impact of these factors on the varieties. The question posed was how do these conditions support quality and character in the wine? Thus in 2010 an attempt was made to classify the classic vineyards objectively. The awareness that great wines only thrive in great vineyards is inherent in this philosophy. The terms Klassifizierte Lage, Erste Lage and Große Erste Lage were thus defined.

Markus Huber Grüner Veltliner Terassen 2021, Traisental, Niederösterreich

Markus Huber Grüner Veltliner Nussdorfer Obere Steigen 2021, Traisental

Markus Huber Grùner Veltliner Ried Alte Setzen 1ÖTW 2021, Traisental

Markus Huber Grüner Veltliner Nussdorfer Obere Steigen 2021, Traisental

Markus Huber Grùner Veltliner Ried Alte Setzen 1ÖTW 2021, Traisental

Markus Huber Grùner Veltliner Ried Zwirch 1ÖTW 2021, Traisental

Markus Huber Grüner Veltliner Ried Berg 1ÖTW 2021, Traisental

Markus Huber Grüner Veltliner Ried Berg 1ÖTW 2016, Traisental

Markus Huber Grüner Veltliner Ried Berg 1ÖTW 2017, Traisental

Markus Huber Riesling Ried Berg 1ÖTW 2021, Traisental

Markus Huber Getzersdorfer Riesling Engelsberg 2021, Traisental

Markus Huber Riesling Rotenberg 1ÖTW 2021, Traisental

Markus Huber Weissburgunder Rosenweg 2021, Traisental

Markus Huber Metamorphosis 2021, Traisental

Markus Huber Pinot Noir Rosenweg 2021, Traisental

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Matthias Warnung – Kamptal

Welcome to the low intervention winemaking world of Matthias Warnung. Warnung farms 10 hectares in the Kamptal after taking over the winery from his father in 2010. Matthias has worked with other winemakers, including Craig Hawkins, the South African natural winemaker behind the brand Testalonga. He also worked alongside Tom Lubbe of Matassa in the Roussillon. Organically raised grüner veltliner and riesling rest in large old casks for several years, always after wild ferments, extended skin contact and minimal sulphuring.

Matthias Warnung Grüner Veltliner Potato Land 2021

Matthias Warnung Grüner Veltliner Espere 2020

Matthias Warnung Grüner Veltliner Lossling Single Vineyard (Barrel Sample) 2017

Youngest vineyards are bottled after one year. Village wines are two years. The single vineyards minimum five. Aging is done in a cold and humid cellar, barrels cleaned of the nitrates every ten odd years. The grüner veltliner is whole bunch pressed, of a wild ferment and straight to 300L barrel in the 350 year-old cellar. Will be bottled in December after five years, sulphured 15-25 mg at the end. The Jean-Pierre Frick of the Kamptal but this is incredibly clean and pure, far less oxidative and nervous. Now honeyed, paraffin waxy, of lemon preserve with great tension and energy. Acids run the show and texture is lovely. Carefully considered, slowly developed, a process and structured to last. Drink 2022-2030. Tasted November 2022

Matthias Warnung Riesling Single Vineyard (Barrel Sample) 2017

The oldest part of the grüner veltliner vineyard houses riesling, vines around 40 years of age, made in the same way as the Lossling grüner veltliner. Whole bunch pressed, wild ferment and straight to 300L barrel in the 350 year-old cellar. Will be bottled in December after five years, sulphured 15-25 mg at the end. Noses more like older riesling than the grüner does for that variety but the tension here is greater, the fruit skin scents muskier and more intense. Some evergreen here, pencil shaving and more skin-contact feeling in a Gravner meets Fino kind of way. Green olive, almond skin and lime. Complex and fascinating. Drink 2022-2029. Tasted November 2022

_{Klaus and Viktoria, Weinkultur Preiß}

Weinkultur Preiß – Thayern

Fifth generation winemaker Viktoria Preiss and partner Klaus are most concerned with nurturing balanced and healthy soils, healthy vines and grapes. It is what they call “close-to-nature cultivation, certified organic by Austria Bio Garantie and from the 2025 vintage forward they will be officially certified organic. They employ self-produced compost and most importantly diverse cover crops for the purpose of increasing biodiversity, control erosion, provide nutrition, work against soil compaction and produce humus for long term gains. To combat the grape vine moth they use pheromones instead of insecticides. Of great interest has been the decision to use the pruning method of Simonit & Sirch, to increase the overall balance of their vines and to make them more resistant against viral diseases.

Weinkultur Preiß Grüner Veltliner Kammerling 2021, Traisental DAC

Weinkultur Preiß Grüner Veltliner Ried Rosengarten 2021, Traisental DAC

Weinkultur Preiß Grüner Veltliner Ried Rosengarten 2019, Traisental DAC

Weinkultur Preiß Grüner Veltliner Reserve Ried Brunndoppel 2021, Traisental DAC

Weinkultur Preiß Grüner Veltliner Reserve Ried Brunndoppel 2020, Traisental DAC

Weinkultur Preiß Grüner Veltliner Reserve Ried Brunndoppel 2017, Traisental DAC

Weinkultur Preiß Grüner Veltliner Reserve Ried Berg 2021, Traisental DAC

Weinkultur Preiß Grüner Veltliner Reserve Ried Berg 2020, Traisental DAC

Weinkultur Preiß Riesling Kammerling 2021, Traisental DAC

Weinkultur Preiß Riesling Pletzengraben 2021, Traisental DAC

Weinkultur Preiß Riesling Pletzengraben 2020, Traisental DAC