AICHINGER (Kamptal, Austria)
In 1989, the viticultural pioneer Erich Schwanzelberger persuaded his son-in-law Josef Aichinger, then sommelier at the well-known Semmering hotel "Panhans", to start working at the winery. Aichinger and his wife Anna, whose professional career also began in the restaurant business, took over the winery in time to produce the 1989 vintage. The have not only stayed but enhanced the winery with their sense of hospitality and finesse. They added an attractive "Heurigen", which became a popular meeting place for gourmets and wine lovers. Coming home is rarely this good. Forty years prior, Erich initiated a natural approach to cultivation of his vines and those convictions gained Aichinger top recognition in Austria. Their vineyards provide wines of an amazing diversity due to generous contributions of the dry, summer sun of Kamptal and the diverse soil types. Across the 14ha are buried sandstone, loess, loam and blue-grey slate, perfect for gruner veltliner, riesling, sauvignon blanc, roter traminer and even a few red vines. The family sees to it that the wine is made 'in the vineyards', with rigorous work among the vines and healthy soil maintenance. All the grapes are hand harvested and carefully sorted before going in to the cellar. Josef has not dropped a beat since leaving the dining room setting for the fields. Everything is kept polished and in place for the beginning of service, only now his wine to present is his own.
Grüner Veltliner Kamptal 2009

100% Grüner Veltliner All Hand-picked fruit in the second week of October. De-stemmed and gently pressed off skins. Selected yeasts begin fermentation in steel tanks, under low temperatures (7 days). Matured until spring I the same tanks, then bottled (unfined and unfiltered) to rest 1 month before release.