Grüner Veltliner - An Introduction
Grüner Veltliner GrapeFirst things first: Grüner Veltliner is the name of a grape varietal used to make white wines, and this is how you say it (72.0 KB wav file). You might also hear folks refer to it simply as Grüner, or even as GruVe (kind of like “groovy”), which is a moniker I don’t personally subscribe to.
You may have noticed this wine popping up on more and more wine lists as it has become quite the darling of sommeliers. Why? Because dry Grüner Veltliner wines have the uncanny ability to match with almost any food, including those notoriously difficult such as artichokes and asparagus. This new celebrity status has also landed it on the pages of magazines and newspapers, and we think the attention is well deserved.
So how does a glass of Grüner Veltliner taste? It tends to be a crisp, light-to-medium bodied dry wine with an edge of spice. It can have mineral, herbal, floral, and even fresh pea or lentil notes, and it’s known for having a slight white pepper taste on the finish. The grapes can also be harvested late and used to make dessert wine or even Icewine, as vintner Manfred Weiss does.
Austria is the best known country for producing Grüner Veltliner wines, where it makes up a third of all of their varietals grown: a total of about 43,000 acres of vines planted. It is primarily grown in the regions of the Weinviertel, Kamptal, Kremstal, Wachau, and the Donauland, of which the Wachau is perhaps the most famous.
Stamp of the Vinea Wachau
Terraced Vineyards Above the DanubeBelonging to this prestigious group are Josef Högl, Johann Donabaum, and Franz-Josef Gritsch, who still harvest their vineyards by hand: vineyards which range from those on the steep terraces of the hills, where crisp wines with a great mineral edge come from (the Donabaum Spitzer Point Gruner Veltliner Smaragd 2002 is a great example), to those at the foot of the hills in the short valley reaching to the banks of the Danube river where wines that are just as crisp but a bit fatter and more powerful are produced (as a contrast, compare the Spitzer Point to the Donabaum Loibner Garden Gruner Veltliner Smaragd 2002.) These wines are un-oaked, so it is pure varietal-meets-terroir that you are tasting. You can find much more detailed information about the terroir which influences these great wines here, at the Vinea Wachau website.
3 Wachau Grüners
KamptalFor a slightly different style of dry Grüner Veltliner, one would have to look no further than the neighboring wine regions of Kremstal and Kamptal. Kremstal, named for the town of Krems at its center, borders the eastern edge of the Wachau while still remaining in the valley of the Danube. The wines here are perhaps more easily approachable than those of their western neighbor, with a softer fruit profile. Kamptal, named for its proximity to the Kamp river, is then just northeast of Kremstal, and is dominated by the Heiligenstein, or, Hell Rock. The white wines from here have a particularly spicy aroma. For a truly stunning example of what a Kamptal Grüner Veltliner wine can taste like, try the Melusine from winemaker Marion Ebner, which she crafted using vines planted in the reknowned Schloss Gobelsburg vineyards and vinified with just a bit of oak, rendering a complexity that will amaze your palate. You’ll also notice that the very shape of the bottle is different from those which hail from the Wachau: again, this is done by the winemakers to further establish their regional differences.
Be sure to chill your bottle of Grüner Veltliner just a bit before you drink it, and notice the way that it opens up and reveals its layers as it has a chance to breathe. Grüner Veltliner may indeed be a “hip” wine thing these days, but this is a wine that has been cultivated for hundreds of years, and its best examples can stand up against the finest whites that France has to offer- so suffice to say, this is not a trend that is passing. No, this is long overdue recognition for a wine you will find yourself reaching for again and again.
What you think about “Nußberger Riesling “?
The Riesling grapes from the Nussberg, which is considered to be the best vineyard in Vienna, can make truly fine wine when in the hands of a talented vintner. One good example are those from Wieninger, which are imported by another company here to the US. There are also a number of privately held vines on this site, one of which I have had the great luck to sample. Perhaps in the future Winemonger will import some of these great Rieslings.
Hey! I’ve just become aware that this article is being “stumbled upon”. So to you stumblers: please leave a comment, and we’re here if you have any questions.
Thx for u information.Did Grüner Veltliner wine get any rewards in the world?
Hello Ren-
Gruner Veltliner wines have recieved many accolades the world over, and is indeed considered to be a world-class white wine.
Perhaps the most famous example is the 2002 blind-tasting presided over by wine-critic & writer Jancis Robinson, which pitted Austrian Gruner Veltliner against the best Chardonnay’s from around the world. Gruners took the top two spots, and out of the top ten scoring wines, Gruners accounted for 5 (and two of the top Chardonnays were also from Austria!)
These Gruner Veltliners scored higher than wines from Kistler, Gaja, and Latour Corton Charlemagne, to name a few.
To see the full results, read the Winemonger Talk article “Chardonnay Around the World”.
Cheers!
stumbled in great site, look forward to further research and posts
Is this a sweet wine? I see that it says dry however with a mango and peach flavor I have to ask.
Hello January,
These are absolutely dry dry dry. One might even say bone-dry.
When we talk about things like vineyard peaches and stone fruits, this is just to say that these wines have fruit notes.
Perhaps a good example would be to compare it with varietals that are a bit more common: a California Chardonnay is often said to show notes of tropical fruit, while a Pinot Noir is described as having berry notes (or is even called a “jammy fruit bomb”).
And then, in a Gruner Veltliner, these fruit notes are balanced by a distinct note of minerality (think primal rock or wet slate) and they have a wonderful white pepper dash on the finish.
Try a “Federspiel” Gruner for something on the lighter side, and a “Smaragd” Gruner for something fuller-bodied and more complex.
Cheers!
I am hoping you can recommend an affordable gruner Veltliner to have with our weiner snitzel.
Hi Lisa,
As luck would have it, there are a few excellent Gruner Veltliner wines currently on sale. I would highly recommend:
Gritsch Mauritiushof Singerriedel Gruner Veltliner Smaragd 2004 - was $25.99- on sale for $16, and the 2005 which is on sale for $17.
For a lighter styled Gruner which is a great QPR (quality-price-ratio) I would recommend the Kalmuck. The 2006 is on sale for $9.
Just click the On Sale button in the top navigation bar and scroll on down!
Best and cheers,
Emily
How do you pronounce Veltliner? I suppose one have to say something like Feltleener?
best Edmund
We were told of this wine at 3 Doors Down restaurant in Portland this past weekend. We had it with a clam & mussell linguine and a halibut dish. It went well with both. The waiter did open it early while we drank our cocktails so it could breathe and warm up a tad. Great taste! I love a crisp Macon and this really reflected the minerality. I will look for it - think ours had Schloss in the name…:-)
Thanks for the comment, Laney. We paired the 2006 Melusine Gruner Veltliner this past weekend with a clam linguine dish and it worked perfectly. Marion Ebner, who makes the Melusine, uses vines planted at that Schloss winery (it’s Schloss Gobelsburg - they make very good wines).
Cheers!
Hello Edmund- you are right, Felt-LEE-ner would sound correct. In general, here in the states if you say Velt-LEE-nur it’s considered correct, and your waiter should know just what you’re after.
Cheers.
If I had to substitute a wine for veltliner which would come close?