Austrian wine on UK / US lists

[magnolia]

I'm writing about Austrian wine, and would love to hear about UK or US restaurants, specialist importers, etc. as well as any personal experiences/thoughts. And no, the word is *not* missing an 'al' - I really do mean that little country in Europe )

[Mark Sommelier]

I'm a big fan of Austrian wines, especially the wonderful Gruner Veltliners of Brundlmayer, Mantlerhof and Nigl. I pour them by the glass every Spring and Summer because they are one of the few wines that can handle ripe tomatoes, artichokes, asparagus and other wine un-friendly vegetables without falling apart. Austrian gewurztraminers are generally drier than Alsatians. The rieslings have interesting differences from Mosel and Rhein versions. My friend Terry Theise is the prime importer in the US. You can view his portfolio at :

http://www.skurnikwines.com

[Brad Ballinger]

Another U.S. importer with a large Austrian book is Vin Divino out of Chicago. Their book also includes reds and stickies from Austria.

The restaurants here with large lists tend to have room for wines from Austria, and more of these wines are beginning to appear. We are also starting to see a wider range in pricing. For many of the Austiran wines first introduced into the U.S. market, the price was 2-3 times that of German whites. I realize they are not the same style, but for the average consumer it was difficult to bifurcate the two.

I have a few Austrian wines in my cellar, but I've had to buy them out of state. I've had some interesting reds from Umathum -- very food friendly IMO.

[ludja]

I'm a big fan of Austrian wines, especially the wonderful Gruner Veltliners of Brundlmayer, Mantlerhof and Nigl. I pour them by the glass every Spring and Summer because they are one of the few wines that can handle ripe tomatoes, artichokes, asparagus and other wine un-friendly vegetables without falling apart. Austrian gewurztraminers are generally drier than Alsatians. The rieslings have interesting differences from Mosel and Rhein versions. My friend Terry Theise is the prime importer in the US. You can view his portfolio at :

http://www.skurnikwines.com

Mark Sommelier: Have you ever seen Schilcher wine here in the U.S.? (I didn't see it in Terry Theise's web site).

It is an interesting dry rose wine from Western Styria where some of my family lives; I've only had it there. As far as I know it is very unique to that region although I don't know much about the varietal.

schilcher

[Florida Jim]

I'm writing about Austrian wine, and would love to hear about UK or US restaurants, . . .

I don't get around all that much but the best restaurant list of Austrians I've seen is the Slanted Door in San Francisco. And it matches their Cal-Vietnamese cuisine quite well.

Best, Jim

[ludja]

I remembered seeing some Austrian wines at Gary Danko's in SF. Looked at their website and they have eight white wines listed:

gary danko

Austrian White Wine 

Graüburgunder, Grassnitzberg, Erich & Walter Polz, Südsteiermark 1996  42 

Muscat, Heidi Schröck, Rust, Neusiedlersee 1998  46 

Riesling, Urgestein, Schloss Gobelsburg, Kamptal 1997  39 

Riesling, Urgestein, Schloss Gobelsburg, Kamptal 1999  47 

Rotgipfler Spätlese, Thiel, Gumpoldskirchen 1997  58 

Vogelsang (Pinot Gris & Sauvignon Blanc), Heidi Schrock, Rust, Burgenland 1999  58 

Weissburgunder, Glatzer, Carnuntum 1999  32 

Zierfandler, Grand Select Tradition, Thiel, Gumpoldskirchen 1999  69

[redwinegulper]

I am no expert on Austrian wines, but there is an Austrian restaurant in NYC with a huge Austrian selection. Wallse is the name. Site is www.wallserestaurant.com

Hope this helps...ed

[KatieLoeb]

Everyone beat me to my suggestions of Wallse, Slanted Door, Danube and Gary Danko. All are widely known for their wide selection of Austrian wines. Perhaps the various restaurants could fax or e-mail you copies of their wine lists for your research?

Ludja I've tried the Schilcher before and it's delicious! I've never seen it here though. Quite unique. Like a bone chillingly dry but still fruity rose. Wish I could find it here.

I visited Heidi Schrock in Rust and she was kind enough to show me around her beautiful vineyards overlooking the Neusiedlersee (the largest puddle I've ever seen - size of a lake and about three feet deep!) and let me taste many of her wines at her lovely home. We then proceeded to have a fantastic dinner at a local heuringen that was run by members of her family and where the wines were made by her brother-in-law. A fantastic day and evening that I shall not soon forget. Her wines are of excellent quality and I recommend trying any that you happen to run across. The Weissburgunder, Furmint and Muscat are all delicious, as is the Zwiegelt red, but if you are blessed enough to run across a bottle of the Ruster Ausbruch, the dessert wine that the region is duly famed for, snap it up immediately. It is nectar!

[ludja]

Ludja I've tried the Schilcher before and it's delicious! I've never seen it here though. Quite unique. Like a bone chillingly dry but still fruity rose. Wish I could find it here.

I visited Heidi Schrock in Rust and she was kind enough to show me around her beautiful vineyards overlooking the Neusiedlersee (the largest puddle I've ever seen - size of a lake and about three feet deep!) and let me taste many of her wines at her lovely home. We then proceeded to have a fantastic dinner at a local heuringen that was run by members of her family and where the wines were made by her brother-in-law. A fantastic day and evening that I shall not soon forget. Her wines are of excellent quality and I recommend trying any that you happen to run across. The Weissburgunder, Furmint and Muscat are all delicious, as is the Zwiegelt red, but if you are blessed enough to run across a bottle of the Ruster Ausbruch, the dessert wine that the region is duly famed for, snap it up immediately. It is nectar!

It is special; outside of Graz (to the West) there is an area called "The Schilcher Road" with many wineries. One of my grandparent's favorites that I have been to a few times is Lazarus. I brought a few bottles back, but if you've never seen it here during your work it probably isn't available.

I was lucky to be the area last time during the fall so I also got to taste very young wines that I believe are partially fermented; a type of grape must and very refreshing. In that region of Austria anyway, is is called 'Sturm".

I looke around a bit more on the net and found some info re: the varietal for Schilcher wine; it's called "Blauer Wildbacher" and according the info is a local varietal.

Your experience near Rust sounds wonderful- the wine, food, people, scenery. I don't know that much about Austrian wines yet, but isn't Heidi Schrock a very esteemed vintner?

[KatieLoeb]

I was lucky to be the area last time during the fall so I also got to taste very young wines that I believe are partially fermented; a type of grape must and very refreshing. In that region of Austria anyway, is is called 'Sturm".

Ludja - I was of the impression that this stuff caused a bit of Sturm und Drang in the digestive tract and was dangerous merely from that stand point. It's like drinking still fermenting cider. I'm not thinking good thoughts about this. If it didn't make you ill I don't think you drank enough of it. Of course perhaps the Austrians in my acquaintance only know from overindulgence

I looke around a bit more on the net and found some info re: the varietal for Schilcher wine; it's called "Blauer Wildbacher" and according the info is a local varietal.

Intersting. I'll have to look into that. My Wine Lovers's Companion lists neither Schilcher or Blauer Wildbacher.

Your experience near Rust sounds wonderful- the wine, food, people, scenery. I don't know that much about Austrian wines yet, but isn't Heidi Schrock a very esteemed vintner?

Indeed, Ms. Schrock is quite the esteemed vintner, and a fascinating and gracious companion as well. I have a soft spot in my heart for lady winemakers and their products and she's one of the very best. Rust is a lovely town with historic older homes and lovely surrounding vineyards. The neatest thing about Rust is all of the storks that are everywhere! There are stork nests on top of every chimney in town it seems (they are considered good luck), and the big awkward birds are just wandering about everywhere. Having passed a stork at roadside on the way into town I realized it looked familiar but I couldn't place it. "What the heck was that?" I thought to myself. Then I realized it belonged on the front of a birth announcement card with a baby in a bunting hanging from its beak!

[Mark Sommelier]

Sturm is a tradition in Austria. Partially fermented grape must. Easy to drink, wicked hangover. In 5 months it becomes Heurige .

[magnolia]

Thanks so much for all of this, it's really helpful.

[Brad Ballinger]

It's like drinking still fermenting cider. I'm not thinking good thoughts about this. If it didn't make you ill I don't think you drank enough of it. Of course perhaps the Austrians in my acquaintance only know from overindulgence

I visited the Pfalz this past October, and there is something that may be similar. Everywhere, there were signs for "Neuer Wein," which was partially fermented or fermenting grape must, and came in both rot and weiss. The weinstuben would frequently serve it along with zwiebelkuchen (onion tart). My wife loved the stuff. I thought it was interesting, and a good match for the onion tart.

Locals bring their jugs to any weingut advertising neuer wein and get it filled up. Obviusly, it isn't bottled. But there are those who complain of gas and digestive problems if they drink too much of it.

On another note to Magnolia -- One more restaurant with a somewhat larger than average selection of Austrian wine is Arun's in Chicago.

[ludja]

I was lucky to be the area last time during the fall so I also got to taste very young wines that I believe are partially fermented; a type of grape must and very refreshing. In that region of Austria anyway, is is called 'Sturm".

Ludja - I was of the impression that this stuff caused a bit of Sturm und Drang in the digestive tract and was dangerous merely from that stand point. It's like drinking still fermenting cider. I'm not thinking good thoughts about this. If it didn't make you ill I don't think you drank enough of it. Of course perhaps the Austrians in my acquaintance only know from overindulgence

I've heard the same about the "Sturm and Drang"---but luckily I've never experienced it personally!

A general comment on Austrian wines in San Francisco restaurants I meant to mention before--a relatively large number of restaurants have at least one Austrian wine on the list; usually seems to be a Gruner Veltliner.

Aside: some of my relatives also live in Burgenland and were actually the lucky ones in their small village--they had a stork on their chimney (with a special iron grill to support the nest above the chimney)! As a kid I always thought it was so exotic that they migrated from Eygpt/Africa.

Edited February 18, 2004 by ludja (log)

[ludja]

Just got my March issue of Saveur today. If you have access to it; there is a short article by John Winthrop Haeger along with some tasting notes for primarily Austrian 2002 Gruner Veltliners.

Edited February 20, 2004 by ludja (log)