Winemaker Notes
Fass 4 is a phenomenal introduction to the estate wines of Bernhard Ott. Named for the fass (barrel) that was selected every year by a customer of Bernhard's father, this is meant to be a consistent, benchmark wine for the domaine.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Complex and focused, with nuances of kiwi, durian and ruby grapefruit and featuring hints of white pepper and wet stone. Long and graceful on the finish, delivering impressively spiced character with shaved ginger and savory mineral.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Ott's 2022 Grüner Veltliner Fass 4 is a classic again, a typically light, bright and refreshing Veltliner with mouth-filling yet also vibrantly fresh fruit and a savory and even saline finish. It has a very good, textured and finely mineral finish.
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Wine Spectator
A focused, linear white, with a chiseled core of green apple and pear set against a firming wall of mineral notes, while a green herbaceous thread weaves through. Flecks of white pepper and racy acidity lend a taut feel as intensity builds on the dry, mineral-laced finish. Drink now.
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.
Appreciated for superior wines made from indigenous varieties, Austria should be on the radar of any curious wine drinker. A rather cool and dry wine growing region, this country produces wine that is quintessentially European in style: food-friendly with racy acidity, moderate alcohol and fresh fruit flavors.
Austria’s viticultural history is rich and vast, dating back to Celtic tribes with first written record of winemaking starting with the Romans. But the 20th century brought Austria a series of winemaking obstacles, namely the plunder of both world wars, as well as its own self-imposed quality breach. In the mid 1980s, after a handful of shameless vintners were found to have added diethylene glycol (a toxic substance) to their sweet wines to imitate the unctuous qualities imparted by botrytis, Austria’s credibility as a wine-producing country was compromised. While no one was harmed, the incident forced the country to rebound and recover stronger than ever. By the 1990s, Austria was back on the playing field with exports and today is prized globally for its quality standards and dedication to purity and excellence.
Grüner Veltliner, known for its racy acidity and herbal, peppery aromatics, is Austria's most important white variety, comprising nearly a third of Austrian plantings. Riesling in Austria is high in quality but not quantity, planted on less than 5% of the country’s vineyard land. Austrian Rieslings are almost always dry and are full of bright citrus flavors and good acidity. Red varietal wines include the tart and peppery Zweigelt, spicy and dense Blaufränkisch and juicy Saint Laurent. These red varieties are also sometimes blended.