2004 Franz Hirtzberger Riesling Hochrain Smaragd

Hirtzberger’s 2004 Riesling Smaragd Hochrain offers a lovely aroma of yellow plum, fresh lemon, and diverse, pungently scented flowers. The palate impression of this medium-bodied wine is juicy and invigorating, with a fine, rich, nutty, plum pit-accented substrate beneath its citrus and flowers. Then comes a finish of enormous, graceful length combining citrus and salts, plummy fruit, flowers, nut oils and mineral notes. This is a model of the ability of Austrian Riesling to amass sheer fruit and mineral density without sacrificing elegance or interplay of flavors, as well as to exhibit a tail that wags the entire taster, forget the dog. Importer: Vin Divino, Chicago, IL; tel. (773) 334-6700