Willi Brundlmayer Gruner Veltliner Loiser Berg Reserve

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Tasted from cask, Brundlmayer's limited 2010 Gruner Veltliner Loiser Berg Reserve might, he notes, become the template for future bottlings as well, with the lesser fruit from this site possibly being in future - as it was this year - declassified into Kamptaler Terrassen. The impetus for this approach is the so-called "Erste Lage" classification internal to the Traditionsweinguter group of which Brundlmayer is a member (and for a bit more about which, consult the introduction to this report). Since fellow-members who have holdings in the Loiser Berg will be treating this site as an Erste Lage (meaning in practice that a small icon is displayed on the label and the bottling pegged at the upper-end of the estate's price list), Brundlmayer thinks it would avoid awkwardness or confusion for him to treat this site the same way. He certainly agrees that the best parts of it are top-flight. Here we have red currant rather than gooseberry, and hints of coffee and herbs add further interest on a silken, quite substantial, yet persistently refreshing, honeydew melon-drenched, green bean-laced palate. Savory, saline, stony, and faintly peppery notes lend saliva-inducement and invigoration to a long finish. I expect this will be worth following for at least 7-9 years. Despite the relatively short crop in 2010, Brundlmayer notes that volumes were not inordinately impacted at the upper level of his portfolio, and that he expects as usual, if not more so, to take time with the release of the top Gruner Veltliner. (Brundlmayer is also among the very few Austrian growers to - largely for the benefit of his foreign customers - re-release selected wines after they have had a number of years in bottle; and he releases virtually no reds until they have enjoyed significant bottle age.) For now though, 2010 seems to be a collection that reflects its vintage's challenges and in which Riesling from the Heiligenstein is clearly the star. Brundlmayer's 2009s - the whites, at least - are more uniformly excellent. (He won-t begin showing me 2009 reds until next June.) What's more, some sort of miracle, the like of which I have never before witnessed at this address, seems to have taken place under the auspices of noble rot (and those sweet 2009s should come our way in the next year or two). The high quality and fascination of Brundlmayer's diverse sparkling cuvees is worth once again noting, even if I have omitted publishing detailed notes and small-lot designations for what are always officially non-vintage wines. It's also worth singling-out an all"2007 cuvee of Pinot and Chardonnay with a bit of Gruner Veltliner that was bottled Extra Brut "-though believe, me," notes Brundlmayer, "we try-out nearly every sort of dosage and were surprised that this performed better without" - a wine whose combination of herbal, vegetal, nutty, and mineral tones offers subtly delicious -food- for thought.Importer: Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300