Austria: Mecca of white wine
There is hardly another country in Europe that has changed its attitude towards wine production so much in the last thirty years and has so rapidly raised the quality of its wines as Austria.
Today, she takes her rightful place in the Wine Hall of Fame and her wines are known to be of consistent and uncompromising quality. However, for many consumers around the world, it remains unknown. The most common prejudice about Austrian wines is that Austria is too cold a country to grow grapes and that if it is grown, its wines are sweet. The reality could not be different and curious wine people around the world sooner or later have the good fortune to try the intense, mineral and dry white, the fruity and elegant red or phenomenal dessert wines of the country. This is usually the beginning of a lifelong love affair.
Austrian vineyards are located almost entirely in the flat and hilly eastern regions of the country - in the districts of Lower Austria (Niederösterreich), Burgenland (Burgenland) and Styria (Steiermark). The climate is temperate continental, with four distinct seasons and different influences: continental, softening from the Atlantic, cold northern and Mediterranean. The soils are extremely diverse: loess and gneiss, shale, volcanic, sandy, clayey, etc. Serious climate regulators are the Danube and Lake Neusiedl on the border with Hungary, as well as the forests in northeastern Austria.
As a wine area, Austria is almost as large as Bulgaria - 46,500 hectares, and the cellars are much more in number - 4,000. Typically for winemaking in Austria are small family cellars and this is crucial for the high quality of wines. 67% percent of the wine is white and although reds are becoming better and more sought after, Austria remains the Mecca of white wine. The flagship of local wine is called Grüner Veltliner and occupies over 1/3 of the total area of vineyards in the country. The variety is said to have a hundred faces and it really produces wines in every possible style and quality level: from fresh and light through extracts and thick to dessert and sparkling wines. The aromatic palette is extremely wide: white stone fruit, citrus fruits, spiciness (white pepper), nuts, minerals, flowers, spices and much more.
Another grape variety that must be mentioned when it comes to Austria is Riesling. Although it occupies a small place in the plantations (only 4.3%), the Austrian Riesling, especially from the Danube valley, is considered the pearl in the Austrian wine crown: rare and of exceptional quality. The wines are always dry (except when it comes to dessert wines) and have impressive aromas of peach, apricot, exotic fruit and flint, as well as a remarkable structure and length.
Sauvignon Blanc from Austria is another wine achievement of the country, which is yet to be talked about. The region of Styria, on the border with Slovenia, is known for the top quality of its wines, as well as their significant aging potential. Blackcurrants, gooseberries, passion fruit, asparagus and freshly cut grass are the distinctive aromas for Styrian wines.
Thanks to its diverse terroirs, Austria also houses members of the most famous Burgundian family: Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris. Coming mainly from the plains and warm vineyards of the Burgenland region, on the border with Hungary, the wines of these varieties can be compared with world-renowned examples of wine art.
The Zierfandler and Rotgipfler varieties are a specialty of the Vienna-based Termenregion and are considered one of the best kept secrets of Austrian winemaking. They occupy a tiny part of the vineyards of a single region and their wines carry beauty and depth that deserve to be known and loved.
And if that doesn't seem like much, here are some more white varieties you can continue your Austrian wine journey: Bouvier, Frühroter Veltliner, Furmint, Müller-Thurgau, Muskateller, Neuburger, Roter Veltliner, Scheurebe, Sylvaner, Traminer and Welschriesling.
