The Hills are Alive with the Sound of Austrian Wine

The hills of Austria might have once been alive with the sound of music but today the hills are alive with the sounds of quietly bubbling vats of grape juice. The tune and tenor might have shifted but there is a harmonious sound coming forth from this storied wine land, there is a reason Vienna is better known in Austria as Wien, and we all are the better for it.

For too long the modern aspect of Austrian wines have stayed within the comfort zones of sommeliers and wine geeks and out of the paws of most of the wine drinking population of our fair Cities and that is something we all should change since I have found Austrian wines to be just too damn good to keep under wraps any longer. Sure, you might have had a Gruner Veltliner, the mainstay of modern Austria, but have you ever had a smokey Zweigelt or a lush Blaufrankish? Probably not and that, dear friends, is a real crying shame.

Austria is a historic wine land that just doesn’t get it’s fair share in the world of overripe monster wines. Be it all with wines light, lithe and unpronounceable. The land itself is centered in Europe with most of the country given way to the Alps but on the Eastern sides of the land lies an almost perfect vine growing region. Cold winters and warm, and long, summers/falls provide the vines ample time to ripen but still with an odd ability to hang on to the most vital acidity (and it is the acid here that makes Ken Kesey wish for more gas for Furthur). The soils are varied but consistent in stressing the vines to produce stylized wines of substance and grace. This is true from the Kamptal down to the Styria – all varied in slope, aspect and soil but almost all have the common thread of producing great wines that are unheard of here in the Twin Cities.

While the talk of soil and slope can be exciting for some what has really captured my attention between feeding the baby and tasting these wines was in how two common threads really tied all of these producers together: youth and family. With the exception of Domaine Leth all of the winemakers crafting the wines below are young. In the world of wine is is rare to find a winemaker at the helm that is under the age of 35 yet three of the five winemakers here are all under that golden bar and five wines are crafted by families not corporations. One of those two threads would be interesting but both in conjunction is a rare treat and one to make note of. Here are wines of an extreme caliber being made by folks and families all on their way up unafraid of being encumbered by the past or fear of technology. The way I look at it is if these are the wines they are making now then what heights can we look forward to when they hit their strides? The highest of highs for sure.

So what about these wines? Simple -Â they are awesome. Clean and refreshing whites. Sultry and complex reds. All of them winners without pause.

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