The theme for this year's big Chaine des Rotisseurs dinner will be Austria - Hungary so we had a tasting of the wines together with the excellent menu put together by the Diamond Hotel. Unfortunately the reds didn't quite live up to the food so we had to ditch those in favor of Bordeaux. Slim pickings of Austrian wine here in Manila so we really didn't have much of a choice. Good thing I found a reference to what Emperor Franz Josef usually drank with his meals and it turns out he favored Bordeaux.
We started with some Champagne for cocktails. Lhuillier Brut Rosé NV - Salmon pink. Raspberry and strawberries mixed in with citrus rind and some white pepper. Nothing special but a good, light, refreshing champagne.
On to the Austrian wines:
Wieninger Grüner Veltliner Nußberg 2013 - Slightly honeyed almost overripe fruit on the nose. Pineapple, mango and lime. Much lighter than I expected given the rather ripe nose. Stony and minerally. Palate matches the fruit on the nose but definitely no honey or overripe notes. A little bit of orange on the finish as it warms up. Good length. A good match for the outstanding Gelee of Crayfish on Bean Salad with Venezianischen Oyster and the Pheasant Consommé with Veal Kidneys.
Heinrich Blaufränkisch 2010 - Interesting nose. Very Rhone in character with lots of pepper, dried herbs and smoked meat. There characteristics are reinforced on the palate. Medium-bodied with soft tannins make it ready to drink. Somewhat rustic feel to it. A decent match for the main dish of veal but nothing special. Most preferred to go with Bordeaux rather than stick to this.
Heinrich Zweigelt 2012 - Lovely nose. Very ripe blueberry, plum and black cherry. Some dried herbs. Touch of chocolate. Dried blackberry on the palate. Quite dry but still juicy. Just a notch below medium-bodied. The palate doesn't quite live up to the promise on the nose. Much too light for the main dish.
Chateau Fombrauge St. Emilion Grand Cru 2011 - Very dark. Strong coffee note on the nose. Ripe fruit in the Magrez style but it seems to be tempered here maybe due to the less than stellar vintage. Blackberry and black currant mixed with asphalt and graphite. Soft tannins. Obviously young but quite approachable. It would be interesting to see how this ages. This had the weight to match the food far better than the Austrian reds so this is what we'll be using.
Disznókó Tokaji Aszú 5 Puttonyos 2005 - Naturally, we had to use Tokaji for dessert. Classic Tokaji. Orange gold color. Honey, apricots and smoke. Marmalade and candied tropical fruit. Dried mango and pineapple. Sweet spices. Very long. Sweet but by no means tiring to drink. Fresh acidity providing balance to the sweetness. 6 puttonyos would have been better but the budget only provided for 5 puttonyos. Still, not a bad way to end.