Winemaker Notes
Multi-layered and savoury! Ripe pear fruit, lemon zest, red currant and pleasant saltiness. Remains long on the aftertaste, marvellous structure
Vegan-Friendly
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
From gravely soils, the 2019 Sauvignon Blanc Ried Kapellenweingarten shows a bright, clear, cool, classic Sattler scent of white fruits with foral-vegetal and also stony notes. Juicy, salty, spicy and savory on the palate, yet dense and juicy, this is a full-bodied, very elegant and balanced classic style of Sauvignon. It is tight and reveals an intense, well-structured and persistent fnish, always animating.
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James Suckling
Lovely grapefruit, mandarin and blood-orange character. Very crisp and racy, but with enough substance and ripeness to carry this. Well-integrated tannins. So energetic at the expressive wild-herb and berry finish. From organically grown grapes.
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Wine Spectator
Focused and crackling with acidity, this shows floral perfume, gooseberry and lime zest grounded by intense minerality. Offers good length, with parsley and chive accents playing out across the smoke-kissed finish. Drink now. 580 cases made, 50 cases imported.
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Wine Enthusiast
Shows good zip, with tarragon and sage notes giving this a tangy, herb-accented feel, while lemon curd and yellow-plum notes play out in the background. It is lighter in body and quite refreshing, with a mouthwatering finish.
Capable of a vast array of styles, Sauvignon Blanc is a crisp, refreshing variety that equally reflects both terroir and varietal character. Though it can vary depending on where it is grown, a couple of commonalities always exist—namely, zesty acidity and intense aromatics. This variety is of French provenance. Somm Secret—Along with Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc is a proud parent of Cabernet Sauvignon. That green bell pepper aroma that all three varieties share is no coincidence—it comes from a high concentration of pyrazines (herbaceous aromatic compounds) inherent to each member of the family.
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.