Austria Flashcards
What chemical sparked the ‘antifreeze scandal’ in Austria? What year
Diethylene glycol in 1985, which texture to lighter wines
Antifreeze is actually ethylene glycol
What is a weinbaugebiete?
A major wine growing region
What are the 4 Weinbaugebiete of Austria?
Niederösterreich,
Wien (Vienna),
Burgenland, and
Styria (Steiermark).
What is the most cultivated white grape variety of Austria? What are some others?
Grüner Veltliner (~30% vineyard acreage)
followed by Welschriesling, Müller Thurgau, Weißburgunder, Riesling, and Chardonnay
What are two synonyms for Chardonnay in Austria?
Morillon and Feinburgunder
What is the leading red grape variety in Austria? What are some others?
Zweigelt
Blaufränkisch itself, Blauer Portugieser, and Blauburger
What is Zweigelt a crossing of?
Blaufränkisch x St. Laurent
What is Blauburger a crossing of?
Blaufränkisch x Blauer Portugieser
What are the three quality levels of Austrain wine?
Wein
Landwein
Qualitätswein
From where can Qualitätswein come?
What varieties?
Sourced from a single weinbaugebiete or one of 16 smaller regions.
One or more of the 35 permitted grape varieties.
What is the Prufnummer indicate?
For Qualitätswein.
It has passed a chemical analysis and tasting panel.
What level(s) of wine can use the banderole?
Only Qualitätswein
What did Wein used to be called?
Tafelwein, changed in 2009
What kind of geographic indication can ‘Wein’ include on the label?
Just “Österreich”
Can ‘Wein’ carry a vintage and varietal
yes
How is Landwein different from Qualitätswein?
Same 35 different varietals, but Landwein has three broad geographic designations
(Weinbauregionen):
Weinland, Steierland, or Bergland
What are the three Weinbauregionen?
Weinland, Steierland, or Bergland
What weinbaugebiete corresponds to the weinbaugeregion of Steierland?
Steiermark
What weinbaugebiete corresponds to the weinbauregion of Weinland?
Niederösterreich
Wien
Burgenland
What weinbaugebiete corresponds to the weinbauregion of Bergland?
None, it is around 500 ha of vineyard land scattered throughout the remainder of Austria’s mountainous countryside
What is the max yield for each quality level
Wein, Landwein, and Qualitätswein all have a max yield of 9,000 kg/ha (67.5 hl/ha)
What are the categories of Qualitätswein in Austria?
Prädikatswein and Districtus Austriae Controllatus (DAC)
What is the minimum alcohol content of wines labeled by Prädikat in Austria?
How does this compare to Germany?
5%
Germany: 7% (5.5% for BA, TBA, and Eiswein)
What does DAC stand for?
Districtus Austriae Controllatus
Can Prädikatswein be chaptalized in Austria?
Nope. No chaptalization and no Süssreserve
What are the two additional categories that Austria has in its Prädikatswein hierarchy?
Strohwein
Ausbruch
What is strohwein?
a dried grape wine of at least Beerenauslese ripeness
25° KMW
What is ausbruch?
a sweet specialty of Rust in Neusiedlersee-Hügelland
27° KMW
What are the 9 DACs of Austria?
Weinviertel (2002), Mittelburgenland (2005), Traisental (2006), Kremstal (2007),
Kamptal (2008), Leithaberg (2009),
Eisenberg (2010), Neusiedlersee (2012) and Wiener Gemischter Satz (2013)
What is KMW?
Klosterneuburger Mostwaage Scale
in which 1° KMW=1% sugar content of the must
What is the KMW for Generic Wine?
10.6° KMW
What is the KMW for Landwein?
14° KMW
What is the KMW for Qualitätswein?
15° KMW
What is the KMW for Kabinett?
17° KMW
What is the KMW for Spätlese?
19° KMW
What is the KMW for Auslese?
21° KMW
What is the KMW for Beerenauslese?
25° KMW
What is the KMW for strohwein?
25° KMW
What is the KMW for Eiswein?
25° KMW
What is the KMW for Ausbruch?
27° KMW
What is the KMW for Trockenbeerenauslese?
30° KMW
What categories have a minimum must weight of 25° KMW in Austria?
Beerenauslese, Strohwein, and Eiswein are all at least 25° KMW
What are the 8 subzones of Niederösterreich?
Weinvertel, Carnuntum, Thermenregion, Wagram, Traisental, Kremstal, Kamptal, Wachau
What are the four DACs of Niederösterreich?
Weinvertel
Traisental
Kremstal
Kamptal
How does the terrain differ in Niederösterreich than in the rest of Austria?
The Alpine Terrain of the rest of Austria yeilds to the Pannonian Plain -
How does the Pannonian Plain influence the climate of the Niederösterreich?
It makes it continental
shers in hot, dry summers and severe winters
What is the main river that runs through Niederösterreich?
Danube
What two of the eight Niederösterreich regions do not lay along the Danube River?
Weinviertel and Thermenregion
What is Austria’s largest subzone?
Weinviertel
What was the first DAC?
Weinviertel
What grape(s) is Weinvertel made from?
Gruner Veltliner only!
When Weinviertel goes to the tasting panel, what are they looking for?
Must have distinct, peppery note
May not have wood or botrytis
What is the minimum alcohol for all the Niederösterreich DACs? For the their Reserves?
12%
13% for reserve
What makes a DAC in Niederösterreich ‘Reserve”?
It had higher min alcohol, and can have notes of botrytis or wood
What grapes are permitted in Traisental?
Riesling and Gruner Veltliner
What grapes are permitted in Kamptal?
Riesling and Gruner Veltliner
What grapes are permitted in Kremstal?
Riesling and Gruner Veltliner
Of the four DACs in Niederösterreich, which are allow just one grape and which allows two?
Weinviertel allows just GV.
Traisental, Kamptal, and Kremstal allow Gruner Veltiner and Riesling.
Where is Langenlois located?
Kamptal
Where is the Heiligenstein vineyard located?
Kamptal
Where is the Lamm vineyard located?
Kamptal
Where is the Dechant vineyard located?
Kamptal
What does Ried mean on an Austrian wine label?
It is a top site and the village name can be left off.
How many sites were elevated to Erste Lage in 2010 in Austria?
52 sites
What organization created Erste Lage sites in 2010 in Austria?
Österreichischen Traditionsweingüter
founded in 1992
What are the only grape varieties permitted to use the Erste lage logo in Austria?
Gruner Veltliner and Riesling
Where is the Wachau located in the Niederösterreich?
Westernmost
What is the soil structure of the Wachau?
loess and gföhler, or gneiss, with a proportion of alluvial sand in the lower vineyard sites near the river’s edge
What are the three wine styles in the Wachau?
Steinfeder
Federspiel
Smaragd
What is Steinfeder named after?
A local grass found in the vineyards
What is Federspiel named after?
A falconer’s tool
What is Smaragd named after?
An emerald lizard who basks on the terraces
What is the KMW and abv for Steinfeder?
min 15° KMW
max 11.5% abv
What is the KMW and abv for Federspiel?
min 17° KMW
11.5%-12.5% abv
What is the KMW and abv for Smaragd?
min 19° KMW
min 12.5%
about 95 oeschle, Spatlese ripeness
What is the famous vineyard in Weissenkirchen?
Achleiten
In what Niederösterreich subregion is FX Pichler located?
Wachau
In what Niederösterreich subregion is Emmerich Knoll located?
Wachau
In what Niederösterreich subregion is Prager located?
Wachau
What is the Vinea Wachau?
an organization of estates sworn to uphold the tenets of natural winemaking as spelled out in the Codex Wachau
What is spelled out in the Codex Wachau?
no additives (including chaptalization), no aromatization (including the use of new barrique), and no “fractionation” (techniques such as de-alcoholization).
How influential is the Vinea Wachau?
Very. Members control over 85% of vineyard acreage.
What did the Wagram used to be called?
Donauland til 2007
What are the two main grapes of the Wagram?
Gruner Veltliner
Roter Veltliner
What is Roter Veltliner and in what subregion is it a specialty?
a red grape not related to Gruner Veltliner
The Wagram
What is the climate like in Thermenregion?
Hot! contintental climate of the Pannonian Plain without the moderating effect of the Danube
“Spas Region”
What is Gemischter Satz?
It is a field blend.
Popular in Carnuntum and a recent DAC when coming from Wien.
What are the two white grapes of the Thermenregion?
Rotgipfler and Zierfandler
What is the name of the blend of Rotgipfler and Zierfandler produced in Thermenregion?
Spätrot-Rotgipfler
What grapes are mostly grown in Carnuntum?
Red, particularly Zweigelt
What are the four subregions of Burgenland?
Mittelburgenland
Südburgenland
Neusiedlersee
Neusiedlersee-Hügelland
What are the 4 DACs of Burgenland?
Mittelburgenland
Eisenberg
Neusiedlersee
Leithaberg
Eisenberg DAC is within what Burgenland subregion?
Südburgenland
Leithaberg DAC is within what Burgenland subregion?
Neusiedlersee-Hügelland
What grape is made in Mittelburgenand DAC?
Blaufränkisch
When can wines first be released from Mittelburgenland?
March 1 the year following harvest
Can wine form Mittelburgenland be made in oak casks?
Yes, but they must be large or neutral
What does ‘Reserve’ mean on a bottle of wine from Mittelburgenland DAC?
13% abv (as opposed to just 12%)
additional year of aging
What is the first DAC to allow both red and white grapes?
Leithaberg
Single or blend of Grüner Veltliner, Chardonnay, Neuburger, or Weissburgunder.
minimum 85% Blaufränkisch (restrictions on new wood)
What grapes are allowed in Leithaberg DAC?
Single or blend of Grüner Veltliner, Chardonnay, Neuburger, or Weissburgunder.
minimum 85% Blaufränkisch (restrictions on new wood)
Within what Burgenland subregion is Eisenberg located?
Neusiedlersee-Hügelland
What are two synonyms to Blaufränkisch?
Lemberger - Germany
Kékfrankos - Hungary
From what grapes is Eisenberg DAC made?
Blaufränkisch
What is Burgenland’s most planted grape variety?
Blaufränkisch
Where is Alois Kracher based?
Illmitz in Neusiedlersee
Where are Illmitz and Rust in relation to each other?
Both are on the south part of Neusiedlersee
Illmitz on the east bank
Rust on the west bank
Where does Ausbruch come from?
Rust
How is Ausbruch made?
A bit like Tokaji -
richly concentrated botrytis-affected must is added to less concentrated must—from fruit harvested in the same vineyard—and the two are fermented together, then aged in barrel before release.
From what grapes is Ausbruch made?
Traditionally Furmint
Chardonnay, Muskateller, Pinot Blanc, Neuburger, Welschriesling, Traminer and Pinot Gris.
For what grapes is Neusiedlersee DAC?
Zweigelt
In lassic and reserve styles
What are the DACs of Styria?
None, the only of the Weinbaugebiete to not have a DAC yet.
It only contains 9% of the nation’s vineyards
What are the three subregions of the Steiermark?
Südsteiermark
Weststeiermark
Südoststeiermark
What are the two most cultivated grapes of Styria/Steiermark?
Welschriesling
Wessburgunder
What grape has found considerable success in Sudsteiermark, other than the most grown? In what styles?
Sauvignon Blanc
unoaked and barrique styles
What notable producer in Steiermark is making a reputation with Sauvignon Blanc?
Manfred Tement
What red grape leads in Weststeiermark?
he ancient Blauer Wildbacher comprises over 95% of the red grape acreage and is often vinified as Schilcher, a racy style of local rosé.
What is Schilcher?
a local rose to Weststeiermark, mostly made from Blauer Wildbacher
What is heuriger?
a primeur wine consumed in its infancy in taverns of the same name in Wien
What is sturm?
a half-fermented, sparkling grape juice, usually accompanies harvest-time meals
popular in Vien
What is the only DAC of Wien, just received in 2013?
Wien Gemischter Satz
white, and produced from a blend of at least 3 varieties.
