One of the highlights of my trip to Austria this past fall was the grüner veltliner (pronounced GROO-nah velt-LEE-nah, with your best Germanic accent). We traveled up the Danube river one day and tasted grüner veltliner from the Wachau and Wagram regions, which are beautiful areas with terraced vineyards along the shores of the Danube. There wasn’t a single wine on that trip that I would turn down, they were all quite nice — of course, some were more enjoyable than others. But one thing that disappoints me is that many of those wines don’t have distribution in the US. So, rather than write about a bunch of wines you can’t find here, I’m glad to be reviewing a couple you can.
Both of these wines are produced by Laurenz V. and the grapes come primarily from the Kamptal and Kremstal regions, which lie between Wachau and Wagram. The wines from these regions are influence by both the warm air from the Danube and cooler airs from the north, creating full ripeness from the warmth and crisp acidity from the cooler airs. The wines of this region are also strongly influenced by the minerals in the soils, which add subtle nuances to the characteristics of the wine.
Laurenz und Sophie Singing Grüner Veltliner
The grapes in the Singing Grüner Veltliner come mostly from Kremstal, with some coming from Weinviertel to the northeast of Kremstal. It is 100% grüner veltliner.
Mineral is the most prominent feature on the nose of this wine. It also shows some melon, some lemon and a hint of yeast. The palate has an outstanding, crisp acidity with delicate citrus and melon flavors. And did I mention the acidity? Well, it’s worth mentioning again. It’s just right — intense enough to give the wine a crisp characteristic, but not so much that it makes you pucker. It finishes with mineral and lemon. This is a simple and elegant wine.
It’s not only a reasonably priced introduction to grüner veltliner but it’s also good enough to make a regular appearance at the dinner table. It’s a very nice wine.
Wine: Laurenz und Sophie Singing Grüner Veltliner
Variety: Grüner veltliner
Vintage: 2009
Alcohol: 12%
Rating: 89
Price: $15.00
Find Laurenz und Sophie Singing Grüner Veltliner with Snooth
Laurenz V. Charming Grüner Veltliner
The Charming Grüner Veltliner is 100% grüner veltliner from the Kamptal region. It’s a more expensive than the Singing Grüner Veltliner, and quite honestly more expensive than what we typically cover at Cheap Wine Ratings. But I thought it would make a good comparison, so here goes.
This is a really interesting grüner veltliner to me. The nose shows honey, melon and some herbal / floral characteristics that really give it character. The intensity of the aromas is good too. A lot of grüner veltliner that I’ve tasted is very subtle on the nose, but this has good intensity without losing elegance. The palate begins with ripe apple flavors, followed crisp acidity with herbal and spicy notes on the mid-palate. It finishes with a salted apple flavor. Although it may be a little pricey for the budget-minded, this is an excellent wine.
Wine: Laurenz V. Charming Grüner Veltliner
Variety: Grüner veltliner
Vintage: 2006
Alcohol: 13%
Rating: 91
Price: $27.00
Find Laurenz V. Charming Grüner Veltliner with Snooth
Disclosure: These wines were received as samples.
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