Austria Flashcards
What is the climate of the wine growing regions of Austria?
Continental, with some mediterranean influence from warm air from the east
Where are Austria’s wine regions located?
The eastern half of the country
What are the important geographical features of Austria?
Alpine foothills
Danube river
Where are the quality vines of Austria most likely to be found?
On steep hillsides overlooking the danube river & its tributaries
What are the general styles of white wine in Austria?
Also speak to oak usage
Very dry or very sweet; off-dry styles uncommon.
New oak uncommon
What are the signature grapes of Austria?
Gruner Veltliner, Riesling
Zweigelt, Blaufrankish
What is the Austrian term for wine without a geographical indication?
Wein
What is the Austrian term for wine with a geographical indication?
Landwein
What are the 2 Qualitatswein designations in Austria?
Prädikatswein based on grape ripeness like in Germany, but rarely used
DAC, Austria’s AOP with specifications on varieties and styles, and a focus on dry wines.
What is Wachau’s unique classification system?
Called Vinea Wachau or Codex Wachau
It’s based on ripeness at harvest and has 3 levels, listed in order of increasing ripeness:
Steinfeder, named for a local feathery grass
Federspiel, an ancient term for a tool used in falconry
Smaragd, named for green lizards in the vineyard
What is a Banderole?
A unique Austrian wine cap, a red circle with a white slash
indicating that the wine is of at least qualitatswein quality
What to pair with Gruner Veltliner?
Since it’s a crisp, dry, unoaked white: fresh seafood, smoked fish, fresh veg, dishes with herbs, asparagus, artichokes, fresh cheeses, & schnitzel.
What are the 4 wine regions of Austria?
Neiderosterreich
Burgenland
Steiermark
Wein
What are the 3 key subregions of Neiderosterreich? Is there anything the all have in common?
Kremstal DAC
Kamptal DAC
Wachau DAC
They all make dry whites from gruner & riesling
