We tried these whilst visiting in Bettina's cellar:
1. Weinbaugebiet Weinviertal GrunerVeltliner Quilatswein (13.3%; near unreadable label) ?? (< 2000): Med.gold color; rather stony/grassy/herbal clean/fresh/new mown grass slight complex nose; quite tart very stony/mineral/new mown grass/fresh hay slight herbal/grassy very fresh/youthful flavor w/ little evolution or complexity; med.long herbal/new mown hay very tart/dry rather stony/mineral finish; as fresh & brisk a white as it was from 2014 vintage; showing no evolution whatsoever; very fresh & minerally and a joy to drink in its youth.
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2. Wolfgang/Bettina Wedding Wein GrunerVeltliner '98 or '99: Med.gold color; beautiful mango/R-like/pineapple/floral strong petrol/Mosel valve oil slight herbal/new mown hay/peppery very complex old Alsatian R-like nose; slightly off-dry very tart/tangy quite stony/mineral some pineapple/mango/floral/R-like some valve oil/petrol quite complex beautiful/youthful flavor; very long/lingering some petrol/Mosel valve oil rather floral/R-like/mango tart/off-dry bit stony/mineral finish; much like a young Mosel Kabinett or Alsatian R; beautiful wine that (would have) gone another 10 yrs.
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3. Windberg ?Reich Riesling Oesterich (#327; 12%; trocken; badly compromised label) <2000: Med.dark gold color; beautiful/complex smokey/old-R/honeyed/piney rather petrol/Mosel valve oil spectacular old-R nose; off-dry strong smokey/piney slight pickly/volatile strong Mosel valve oil/petrol tart/tangy/bit metallic very complex very oldMosel R-like flavor; very long/lingering off-dry quite honeyed/old-Mosel very petrol/Mosel valve oil very complex finish; a beautiful old R that resembles an old Mosel Spatlese R.
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4. A.Gottardi Yhrenberg DOC: TrentinoRosso (12%) 1999: Med.dark ruby red/garnet color w/ no bricking; very strong smokey/pungent old Claret pencilly/oldRed (Teroldego?) bit licorice/pungent beautiful fragrant complex nose; bit tart/lean strong pencilly/smokey/pungent bit Chianti-like/bit Nebb-like light earthy/mushroomy/truffly smooth/gentle very complex oldRed flavor w/ light/smooth/gentle tannins; very long oldRed/pencilly/cedary/smokey/pungent some earthy/truffly/mushroomy very complex oldRed nose much like an old Nebbiolo.
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. On our last day @ Woldgang & Bettina's, Wolfgang took us on a tour of his cellar on the south outskirts of Obersulz. Better yet, as he returned home to pick up the key to Bettina's cellar, he gave me free rein to harvest some btls to try from his cellar. I think the term is "a kid in a candy shop".
Years ago, and to a lesser extent now, it was common in Austria for families to have small cellars, at their home or nearby, dug into the hillside, where they would make a little wine for their own consumption, and storage of that wein. On the SW edge of Obersulz, there was a small street where there were a bunch (maybe 25-30) of these cellars dug into the hillside. From appearances from peering in windows & doors, some are now abandoned. A few appear to still have winemaking going on, but most are simply used for wine storage. These cellars often extend 25-40 meters into the ground, often w/ small side rooms extending from the main tunnel. They're dank & cold & musty. Some have electricity..some not (like Wolfgang's).
Wolfgang & Bettina are quite passionate about wine and each purchased a cellar some 25-30 yrs ago, independently. They used to have "get-togethers" (i.e. drinking parties} where everyone would come one afternoon & open up their cellars and share wine. Not so much anymore, I gather. Anyway, it was at these get-togethers that Bettina & Wolfgang met...and eventually married.
Anyway, Wolfgang invited Susan & me to visit his cellar. Thee is still some beaten-up/decrepit wine press and barrels lying in there...mostly for "decoration". Bettina's cellar, across the narrow road, has electricity and is a bit more comfortable in the entrance room for convivial tasting of the wine I harvested from Wolfgang's cellar. He hasn't been adding much to his wine stash there since about 2000, so there was some pretty old btls there. They were mostly covered in grungy mold and some of the labels barely readable. I picked out four that interested me but, because of their age, I held little hope that any of them would be drinkable. How wrong I was. The corks were all sound and the fill-levels pristine.
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2. WeddingWine: In '98 or '99, before they were to be married; Bettina farmed two rows of GrunerVeltliner and made a wine from it. This was probably '98 or '99. It was eventually bttld and used as their wedding wine in 2001. This was their last btl that Wolfgang chose to share w/ Susan & me (without consulting w/ Bettina, I might add). We did take the remainder back to their house for Bettina to try. But Susan & I felt pretty special to be treated to their last btl.
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3. Gottardi: This is, I later found, a producer in the AltoAdige. The wine was, most likely, a Blauburgunder/PinotNoir. The label was almost unreadable. Whatever it was, it was in pretty amazing shape.
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4. I can hardly wait to return to Obersulz and do some real damage to Wolfgang's cellar.
Tom
