2015 Gruner Veltliner Zwerithaler Smaragd

We have here an altogether cooler, more refined, not to mention more transparent personality than that of this year's Federspiel. Lusciously juicy lime, pear and honeydew melon are laced with mint and basil on a polished, glossy, yet in no way heavy midpalate, leading to a sustained finish that soothes and (despite 14 percent alcohol) refreshes. Hints of melon rind and white pepper provide piquant and incisive counterpoint.

From a terraced 0.34 ha plot from the Stift Melk that was planted before World War I (and not just with Veltliner), the 2015 Grüner Veltliner Smaragd Zwerithaler Kammer (Toni Bodenstein's first launch) was harvested with just 22 hectoliters per hectare. With smoky, deep and elegant aromas of crushed stones, this is a pure and noble-textured Zwerithaler with a high concentration and perfect ripeness, lots of tension and piquancy. The finish is spectacular, long and salty, with grip and tension and great aromatic intensity. A great wine. Very rare.

Almost from a monopole (just the Tegernseerhof has vines here) the 2015 Grüner Veltliner Smaragd Zwerithaler displays a very deep, pure, fresh and mineral bouquet with white fruit, lemon and flinty/stony aromas. Full-bodied, fully ripe and generous on the palate, with juicy and concentrated old-vines fruit, but also a piquant acidity and characterizing minerality, this is a rich and intense, pure and persistently salty Veltliner of great complexity and expression. The vineyard was planted in the 1950s and has never had any problems with warm and dry vintages. This is a spectacular Veltliner for the long-term. Jun 2016, www.robertparker.com, Drink: 2016