AMERICAN WINE SOCIETY                          

a non-profit corporation

 
2006 Officers

President: Fred & Molly Fant                      (585) 225-3029

Secretary: John & Mimi Bacilek                   (585) 227-2080

Treasurers: Richard & Pamela Hemmenway    (585) 392-0046

           

February 2006     ROCHESTER CHAPTER NEWSLETTER    Volume 32, No. 2 www.awsrochester.org

 

Wines of Austria

February 18, 2006

 

#

Year

Wine

Price

Votes

Foods

Comments

E

2003

Berger Gruner Veltiner

$9/liter

2

 

 

1

2002

Brundlmayer Sekt Kamptal

“Sekt” indicates a sparkling wine similar to Champagne

$28

9

·      None

·      The grapes are Pinot Gris, Blanc, Noir, and Chardonnay

·      Fermented in stainless, oak for 9 months, yeast on bottling and corked after 3 years

·      Served in top hotels in Vienna – generally preferred to French

2

 

 

2004

Brundlmayer Riesling Langenioiser Steinmassel Kamptal

$22

7

·      Soft Servolet (?) Mild sausage

·      Bread

·      Richness from the Glycerol

·      12.5% alcohol

·      Fusol oil nose gives away the Riesling

3

2001

Prager Riesling Smaragod Weissenkirch Steinriegl Wachau

$30

24

·      Soft Servolet (?) Mild sausage

·      Bread

·      Best with food

·      The house Riesling at the winery

·      Late harvest but fermented dry

·      13% alcohol

4

2004

Heidi Schrock Muscat / Sauvignon Blanc Rust, Burgenland

$18

34

·      Pineapple Cream Cheese on a toast similar to a melba toast

·      Female wine maker with apprenticeship in Germany and S Africa. She is known for interesting blends

·      Sauvignon blanc, Muscat Ottonell and Gelber Muskateller blend

·      Combination of the grapes makes it seem sweet even though the RS is low

·      Dry with a slightly bitter finish

·      Review by David Schillnecht read  - he is a good Austrian reviewer

5

2004

Nigl Gruner Veltliner Kremser Freihelt Kremstal

$17

11

·      “Angemachen” Camembert, beer, onion and paprika spread on hardy bread

·      Switzerland Gruyere cheese

·      Indigenous grape of Austria, akin to Riesling in that it will grow everywhere

·      Clean tasting – watch the enamel on our teeth, though and have Prilosec at the ready! Great with sausages and foods that have an acidic back bone

·      The acidity will enable them to age well

·      Fruity with minerality

6

2004

Prager Gruner Veltliner Federspiel Hinter Der Burg Wachau

$19

16

·      “Angemachen” Camembert, beer, onion and paprika spread on hardy bread

·      Gruyere cheese

·      Musk, pepper, taught, exotic, great solo or with food

·      Peach, apricot flavors

7

 

 

2004

Heinrich Blaufrankisch Burgenland

$19

10

·      None

·      Typical Reds of Austria; called Lemberger in the Finger Lakes

·      This wine is a bit too young to drink – bigger wine, lacks maturity

·      This grape shows best from Burgenland

8

2003

Umathum Zweigelt Burgenland

$19

5

·      None

·      New Austrian hybrid of Portugeser and St. Lawrence – the two most widely produced red wines in Austria

·      Now being grown in the Niagara Peninsula

9

 

 

2003

Kracher Beerenauslese Cuvee Burgenland

$29/ split

 

·      Charlotte Klose’s recipe out of the D&C for a caramel topped shortbread topped with toasted almonds

·      Kracher makes only dessert wines.  He makes the wine based on what is ripened at a particular point in time – names reference particular pickings

·      Fabulous! Caramel flavors go very well with the dessert

·      Perfect sugar/acid balance; long finish; best dessert wine – not syrupy – very clean and smooth

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS

·            Rae Burchfiel: Next tasting March 11, 2006  Wines of the Sierra Foot Hills – wines with good buys – Zinfandels.  Will discuss the area’s miners and the local legends.

·            Steve and Teddi Yuschak have volunteered to chair the Christmas party and they are looking for ideas and volunteers to join the committee. Please contact them at 315-986-1154 or email tcyuscha@aol.com with your ideas, or offer to help.

·            Opening Commentary to set the stage from Gerhard Klose:

Introduction to Austria

o        Size of NY State with 8 Million people, most live in the capital of Vienna

o        Most wine is grown in the north east area, near Vienna

o        Excavation has demonstrated wine in Austria 3000 years ago

o        Monks brought most of the knowledge and came from the Germanic areas

o        1950ish began the promotion of wine in combination with food and generated much of the tourism

o        1985 – some Burgenland vintners – a region of sweet wines -  added Ethylene Glycol to boost sweetness in a poor year and yielded laws that ultimately increased quality – 4 categories of wine as well as 5 categories of sweetness created

o        Many unique terms used to describe wines of Austria – terms not used elsewhere

o        75% of wines are white, 36% of whites are Gruner Veltliner. Other common whites are  Riesling, Pinot and Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, Red Grapes grown as well

o        The red grapes are not meant for aging

o        Austrian wines account for 1% of the world’s wines. 

o        They produce Sekt –sparkling wine they can’t call champagne – Brundylmayer is known as a top producer

o        4 wine growing regions - Near Vienna is ‘lower Austria’ with three unique regions and they produce best white wines: Wachau. Kremstal, and Kamptal.

o        Burgenland, which borders Hungary and is known for botrytis induced (sweet) wines, has three regions - Neusiedlersee, Neusiedlersee–Hugelland, and Mittelburgenland. The land is flat and known for intense red wines

o        Styria a mountainous region with vineyards to 6000 Feet. 

o        Vienna (Wien) is a city-state with great vineyards

o        Non-Burgenland Riesling are made very dry, not in the German style

 

Brian Thomas ended the session with the comment that almost all the wines must be special ordered, but that liquor stores can get them through their distributor.