Winemaker Notes
Very versatile with food -- matches ideally with classic Austrian cuisine, such as Tafelspitz, Backhendl (Austrian fried Chicken), Wiener Schnitzel, or vegetables. When a bit more matured (3-5 years), try pairing with gratins, smoked salmon and trout, and Pan-Asian dishes.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Funky yeast still holds sway on the nose. Underneath that are notions of ripe juicy pear and a soft hint of vanilla. The palate strikes a sonorous balance between smoky vanilla and gently peppered pears. There is concentration and promise. The finish is nutty and very long. This is still tightly closed and needs to unfurl, but will become a great gastronomic wine.
Fun to say and delightfully easy to drink, Grüner Veltliner calls Austria its homeland. While some easily quaffable Grüners come in a one-liter—a convenient size—many high caliber single vineyard bottlings can benefit from cellar aging. Somm Secret—About 75% of the world’s Grüner Veltliner comes from Austria but the variety is gaining ground in other countries, namely Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and the United States.
Climbing north and slightly east of the Kremstal region, Kamptal has very little vineyard area bordering the Danube River (unlike Wachau and Kremstal, whose vineyards run along it). The region takes its name from the river called Kamp, which traverses it north and south. Kamptal’s densely planted vineyards represent eight percent of Austria’s total.
The area experiences wide diurnal temperature variations like the Wachau but with less rain and more frost. Its vast geologic diversity makes it suitable for various experimentations with other varieties besides Grüner Veltliner and Riesling, such as Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc (Weissburgunder), Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, St. Laurent and Zweigelt.
But the region is probably most noted for the beautiful and expansive terraced Heiligenstein, arguably one of the world’s top Riesling sites, as well as some of Austria’s most extraordinary Grüner Veltliner vineyards. Kamptal’s soils, which are mostly loess and sand with some gravel and rocks, make it suitable for Grüner Veltliner, so much so that actually half of the zone is planted to that grape.