Several developments are currently striking in South Tyrol. At least some producers are visibly bucking the trend towards ever warmer wines with rising alcohol levels, which seems to have reached its peak for the time being with the 2017 vintage. The 2018s - as far as we have tasted them so far, many top wines are still to come - often seem a bit leaner, more precise and fresher than their counterparts from the last 3 years.
The increasing number of prestige cuvees or icon wines is also striking. Many of these special bottlings, which often only come on sale after years, definitely live up to the high expectations they arouse, especially where they don't overdo it with the weight (and the wood). Thus, the number of top ratings in our annual BEST OF is noticeably increasing, at least for white wines.
