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Difficult birth - and yet successful

The omens were not the best for this vintage. Everywhere we heard news of the most difficult conditions for a long time. Our expectations of the wines were not particularly high either. Especially in the Weinviertel, where rather light and drinkable wines dominate the picture, the fear was great that we would get mostly thin and green wines in the glass. The surprise at the tasting of the first wines of the Weinviertel DAC this year was all the greater. The vast majority of the DAC-Veltliners were clear, juicy and easy to drink. Even the simpler wines were mostly drinkable and well worth their reasonable price. Among the higher-quality growths - for example at the organic winery Weber, at Haindl-Erlacher or Stadler - there were again a number of very reasonably priced examples this year, as we are used to in the Weinviertel. We have also been able to taste some top wines, especially from Pfaffl, Schwarzböck, Oberschil-Rieger and Norbert Bauer.

But also outside the DAC, the Weinviertel offers good to remarkable Veltliners, including some of the most interesting wines of the entire region. One of the pioneering wineries is certainly that of Johannes Zillinger, who divides his wines into three lines, from clear, straightforward and drinkable at the (always excellent) base to highly complex, concentrated and utterly idiosyncratic at the top. Georg Toifl, with his powerful and multi-layered wines of the GE.ORG line, is also one of the spices of the region. Weinrieder specialises in rather powerful, often somewhat sweet wines. The wines are always good, but you have to like this alcohol-rich, often low-acid, somewhat broad style. In addition, there is Julius Klein with an often excellent "Thetys", Rücker's "Elisabeth" or Winzerhof Scheit, whose "Kiwanis Wein" often leaves the DAC-Veltliner from the same house behind and remains extremely inexpensive.

Light and shade

With Riesling, the top is naturally somewhat smaller than with Grüner Veltliner, especially since we were often presented with wines from the 2013 or even 2012 vintages. Among the 2014s, Pfaffl has clearly led the way so far, followed by Norbert Bauer and Oberschil-Rieger. The wines from Stadler and Scheit are also good value for money. However, some freshly tasted wines from last year's vintages are clearly superior to those of the current vintage. Unchallenged at the top is Johann Zillinger's inspiring 2012 "Numen", which, however, leaves the boundaries of the region and the variety completely behind and can therefore only be recommended to advanced wine drinkers without reservation. Georg Tofl's powerful 13er "Siebzehnlehen" is also quite unique and excellent. If you like it a little sweeter, stick to Schwarzböck's ripe, yet salty-mineral Aichleiten Reserve.

The Burgundy varieties are somewhat mixed in 2014. Even at Pfaffl, Pinot Blanc and Chardonnay do not come close to last year's vintages, except that we are still basically talking about excellent wines here; the prize for the best price performance has so far been won by Weingut Scheit with its Chardonnay "Todt den Hengst". Among the more mature wines, Georg Toifl stands out with its excellent '13 Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris, as does Haindl Erlacher with its 2012 Pinot Gris "Premium". A remarkable rarity among the Burgundies is the first-class, racy and polished '13 Chardonnay Trockenbeerenauslese from the Schwarz winery in Schrattendorf. The Sauvignons obviously had a hard time in 2014: as far as they have been tasted so far, they were mostly very green and audc somewhat rough. But we don't want to neglect Johannes Zillinger's great 13er Fumé Blanc "Numen", which will give great pleasure for years to come.

Underestimated reds

For some years now, the Weinviertel has been making great progress with its red wines. Zweigelt is by far the most cultivated variety here, as it is almost everywhere in Lower Austria, and here the best wineries can easily keep up with those of neighbouring regions. Among the top wines are Scheit's 2011 "In Ölbergen" Reserve as well as Weber's 2012 "Reserve" and Schwarz's "Premium"; Pfaffl's "Sandstein", which also has a recommendable Sankt Laurent in the same price range, is good value and very good.

Roman Pfaffl, as a Weinviertel red wine pioneer, is also ahead of the field in Pinot Noir and Cuvées, but has not yet presented his current wines. This year, Beniamin Späth's "bin 341" with all its power and coolness, Winzerhof Scheit's cuvée "Caro-Line" and Pinot Noir, Ipsmiller's "Empress Sissi", Norbert Bauer's cuvée "Schatzberg" - all from the 2011 vintage - as well as Schwarzböck's ambitious and perhaps a little rustic 12 "Cuvée Capreal" have attracted positive attention.

All current Weinviertel DAC All important producers of the region with their wines

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