Winemaker Notes
In addition to delicate fruit aromas, these wines are characterized by a little spiciness, a balanced body with power, and a refined elegance. They are perfect companions for a variety of foods. This wine, in particular, stands for a balanced richness and rounded intensity, with fine fruit and a zesty spiciness, making it a universal food match.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This has grapefruit, fennel, pear skin and chopped herbs on the nose. It’s fresh and medium-bodied with attractive herbal and pithy undertones.
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Vinous
The 2023 Grüner Veltliner Langenlois is from the deeper, warmer loess soils of Langenlois. It opens with a mossy savor that verges into yeast. The palate has juicy yellow apple, bright lemon and salty, lemony yeast that lends texture and freshness, with vivid length. (Bone-dry)
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.