Winemaker Notes
Beguiling and complex scent of bright yellow grapefruit, lots of apricot, plus pineapple, lavender and turmeric. Finely concentrated and focused on the palate, an essence of apricots, even a little bit exotic, rich and incredibly juicy, the elegant oriental-smoky note in the background, pure Heiligenstein minerality!
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
A gentle notion of Mandarin peel is all the shy nose reveals, even with lots of swirling. The palate intensifies that Mandarin note and also adds a yeasty, earthy touch but he body is essentially stony, taut, concentrated and sleek. This is beautifully honed and while powerful also incredibly poised. Drink 2025–2050.
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James Suckling
A ripe, generous wine for this terroir that so often tends towards mineral austerity. More citrus than peach aromas, the focus tightening and turning darker as the wine flows across the palate into the distance. Drink or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Aged on the fine lees for 10 months, Hiedler's 2019 Zöbing Ried Heiligenstein 1ÖTW Riesling is precise, refined and concentrated on the deep and beautifully aromatic nose that reveals ripe stone fruit, quince and ginger aromas. Fine and elegant on the first palate, this is an intense, round and fruity, full-bodied and persistent Heiligenstein with lots of power and richness but also lingering salinity and fine grip. This another wine from Hiedler that will shine in 10 years and shouldn't be wasted too early.
Rating: 93+
Riesling possesses a remarkable ability to reflect the character of wherever it is grown while still maintaining its identity. A regal variety of incredible purity and precision, this versatile grape can be just as enjoyable dry or sweet, young or old, still or sparkling and can age longer than nearly any other white variety. Somm Secret—Given how difficult it is to discern the level of sweetness in a Riesling from the label, here are some clues to find the dry ones. First, look for the world “trocken.” (“Halbtrocken” or “feinherb” mean off-dry.) Also a higher abv usually indicates a drier Riesling.
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.