WTN: Kloster Neuburg Zierfandler/Rotgipfler '15..(short/bori

Tried this wine Fri night when I wanted a refreshing white:
1. Stift Kloster Neuburg 50% Zierfandler/Rotgipfler WoO: Thermenregion/Gumpoldskirchen (13%; www.Stift-Klosterneuburg.at; Qualitatswein/halbtrocken) Klosterneuburg 2015: Pale gold color w/ lots of tiny bubbles (CO2 refreshed); attractive floral/mango/pineapple light earthy pleasant nose; soft bit frizzante off-dry light mango/floral/pineapple rather dull/vapid flavor; med.short fairly off-dry (2%) soft light pineapple/mango/floral slight earthy/metallic simple finish; pleasant enough nose but refreshed CO2 can't save this dull as dishwater wine; shades of BlueNun.
$23.00 (SFW&S)
____________________
A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. Both Zierfandler and Rotgipfler are said to be crosses of RoterVeltliner and Traminer. They are grown primarily around Gompoldkirchen in the Thermenregion south of Wien.
When I was first trying Austrian wines, Gumpoldskirchen was ubiquitous and a GrunerVeltliner was seldom to be found. Then along came the ethlyene glycol scandal in 1985 and virtually all Austrian wines disappeared from the US market. It took almost a decade for them to recover. But Gumpoldskirchen never did seem to recover and you seldom see it around anymore.
We visited the Kloster Neuburg facility two yrs ago. It is a very impressive facility loaded w/ history...absolutely beautiful/magnificant. The Stift has played a very important role in the Austrian viticulture story. They make a large range of wines. However, I found them to be a bit too industrial/institutional to my taste.
Tom

[David M. Bueker]

There are good, weird grapes, and there are bad weird grapes.

Zierfandler and Rotgipfler fall into the latter category.

There are good, weird grapes, and there are bad weird grapes.

Zierfandler and Rotgipfler fall into the latter category.

Well, David...that may very well be true. I've never had an Austrian Rotgipfler nor Zierfandler
that moved me much. Mostly pretty dull.
However, I'm not willing to damn these two grapes forever. It could very well be that they could
be planted in Calif and make some interesting/superb wines. We just don't know. Given the
right locale and the right winemaking, they could very well make something quite good.
If you recall, at one time, GreyRiesling was regarded as a crap grape, because of wine made at the hands of
Sebastiani and Inglenook. Most all of it was ripped out. Now there are some pretty interesting
Trousseau Gris's being made from these old vnyds.
Tom

[David M. Bueker]

You are really reaching Tom.

Tom, why oh why do you always want to see such varietals planted in Calif. I just do not get it.
If I want a nice Gruner V for example, why should I consider one from over here?

Tom, why oh why do you always want to see such varietals planted in Calif. I just do not get it.
If I want a nice Gruner V for example, why should I consider one from over here?

Well, Bob.....I'm terribly curious to see what those varieties can do in a location w/ such a blessed
climate as Calif. Or the Piemonte. Or NewZealand. Or the Savoie. If I want just another GV to drink,
Austria is the choice. But sometimes I wan a Calif GV. Or an OR Nebbiolo. Maybe, someday,
an Amador Rotgipfler. Do you have no curiosity what it would do in Amador??
Tom

[David M. Bueker]

Gruner has been panted in a number of places in the USA. $10 Austrian liters are better than all of them by a long shot.

Tom, why oh why do you always want to see such varietals planted in Calif. I just do not get it.
If I want a nice Gruner V for example, why should I consider one from over here?

Maybe he wants to pay 3x for the CA version compared to wherever it is normally grown?

On a recent trip to Spain I had some nice wines made from the likes of old-vine Airén and Garnacha Tintorera (aka Alicante Bouchet, the grape that cannot even be used in AOC wines in France), some other 'garbage' grapes.

[David M. Bueker]

But Joe, it's such a privilege to pay $40 for the equivalent of $15 wine.