Hello Dolle! a Grüner Veltliner from Heiligenstein, Kamptal, Austria
Posted on February 19th, 2009
Saved in Sour Grapes recommends, White wine, Wine, €10-€15
Popped into the January Corkscrew wine sale and picked me up a white wine in the shape of a Dolle Grüner Veltliner from Heiligenstein in Kamptal, Austria (€15 down from €19).
Heiligenstein is also a name linked to Alsace in France, but this one is all about a piece of hallowed turf in the Kamptal region of Austria which produces good wines by all accounts.
This wine is delicious – Very dry with lovely zestyness (good acidity), lots of steal and minerally flavours going on and a nice bit of spice too. Highly recommended.
Austrian Wine
Austria has been making wine for centuries – as far back as the Romans. Yet, for some reason, it’s a bit of an unknown quantity outside Austria and wine nerdlinger circles.
Perhaps its still off the radar because it doesn’t produce all that much – many wineries there are smallish family outfits with a focus on quality over quantity.
Grüner Veltliner in Ireland
From an Irish perspective, Austria and its native wine, Grüner Veltliner, could still be described as a bit of a well kept secret (despite my best efforts to evangelise the GrüVee grape).
However, my anecdotal observations are there’s more and more of it coming in, with most good wine shops now making room for two or three different Grüner Veltliner brands on their shelves.
Grüner Veltliner – good QPR
And for good wine (dare I say fine?) the prices remain relatively accessible from a QPR (Quality-Price Ratio). Expect to pay the same for an Austrian Grüner Veltliner as you would for a good consistent New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc.
Grüner Veltliner on Irish wine lists
And it’s not just in good wine shops where it’s beginning to appear, Grüner Veltliner is becoming a must have on restaurant wine lists because of its ability to match a wide range of foods. I spotted it recently in Koh, an Asian Fusion restaurant off Jervis Street in Dublin.
LOIS! GET THE LOIS! It so rocks….
I’ll do my damnest to get my hands on this Lois you speak of.
Austria had some bad press years ago. Something about anti-freeze to preserve their wines? Perfectly safe now of course, and man, they are producing some wonderful stuff. Ironic that I’ve just finished off a bottle of Austrian Pinot Noir.
Hi Matt,
And the Austrian authorities only found out when some producers tried to claim tax back on the anti-freeze.
Haven’t tried Austrian Pinot – any good?
Lar
Yeah, good wine, especially with food. The whites in the same range, particularly the Riesling, are at least as good in comparison to many of the German whites within the same price bracket.
Colm from the corkcrew recommended the Dolle for me at Christmas for the oul prawn cocktail. Worked a treat. I thought that there was some cork spoilage when I opened it first but thankfully the wine was untarnished and christmas day was saved!
I think 2009 will be the year of Austrian wine. It’s been under-appreciated for far too long! It’s been great to see some G-V popping up on restaurant menus.
Good for us, bad for you,,,,,,,now the word is out we are trying to drink as much of our beloved GV as we can.
Spread the word!! GV is nasty. Leave it alone, don’t order it, boycott it PLEASE.
We want to keep it at home. Zum Wohl!
This wine is quite dreadful. Its first taste is slightly chemical, thoughmild and innocuous, but there are no tastes after that, other than the sensation of fluid having been in the mouth. It was a major disappointment.
blogpper, you either got a bad bottle or just have a lack experience with good wine
What kind of wine bears my name?
A lovely Gruner from Austria. The old country for you, Bill?