Autriche Flashcards
What is the climate of Austria?
Cool Continental , with short summers and very harsh winters.
The more northerly regions (Weinviertel) can experience cooling northerly winds, whereas those closest to the Hungarian border (eg Burgerland) are warmed by easterly winds.
t are the main hazards Austrian winemakers can face?
Spring frosts can be an issue in many regions.
Hail can also cause damage (eg Steiermark).
Winter freeze is rarely an issue; however, damage can occur in particularly cold winters.
In low rainfall years water stress can be an issue in some regions, especially those with thin free draining soils, and irrigation may be required.
Disease pressure is low in many parts of Austria, because of moderate precipitation.
Why are the winemaking regions in Austria clustered in the eastern part of the country?
Because the Alps in western Austria are unsuitable for viticulture.
Which river runs through Niederösterreich (Lower Austria)?
The Danube River
Why are summers generally warmer in Austria than in
Germany?
Because Austria opens up to the Pannonian Plain, which is a large flatland (and former sea) that helps usher in warm air that accumulates between the Alps and Carpathian Mountains.
This warm air helps eastern Austrian reds achieve full ripeness and gives Austrian whites greater body and alcohol compared to their German counterparts.
How are the warm growing days in Austria counterbalanced to maintain acidity and freshness in the wines?
Cool winds originating in the north (Poland, Czech Republic) that cool down everything at night, which creates a big diurnal shift, especially for more northerly regions.
What are the main white grapes of Austria?
Grüner Veltliner - most planted
Welschriesling - second most planted
Riesling
Two-thirds of all vineyards in Austria are planted with white grape varieties.
Besides Grüner Veltliner and Welschriesling, what two other white grape varietals are found in Burgenland?
Chardonnay
Pinot Blanc (Weissburgunder)
Sauvignon Blanc is experiencing a burgeoning reputation in which Austrian wine region?
Steiermark in the south
What are the main red grapes of Austria?
Zweigelt - most planted black grape
Blaufränkisch
Sankt Laurent
International grape varieties that are on the rise:
Pinot Noir Merlot Cabernet Sauvignon
What are the parent grapes for Zweigelt?
Blaufränkisch x St Laurent
Fill in which red Austrian grape best matches the following descriptions:
\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ is deeply colored with soft tannins and bramble fruits. \_\_\_\_\_\_\_ has high acid, medium tannins, with flavors of sour cherry and pepper. \_\_\_\_\_\_\_ (similar to Pinot Noir).
Zweigelt
Blaufränkisch (the most highly regarded)
Sankt Laurent
Oak aging is common.
Fill in which Austrian white grape best matches the following descriptions:
\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ displays white pepper, high acidity, and citrus/stone fruits in its youth and honey + toast flavors as it ages. \_\_\_\_\_\_\_ makes simple, citrusy wines with green apple flavors (and make better dessert wines if botrytised). \_\_\_\_\_\_\_ shows ripe, peachy fruits, and are usually dry and medium- to full-bodied.
Grüner Veltliner
Welschriesling
Riesling
In Austria, what are the 4 most important generic wine regions?
Niederösterreich (Lower Austria)
Burgenland
Wien (Vienna)
Steiermark (Styria)
Of the 4 generic winemaking regions in Austria, which two account for the majority of wine production?
Niederösterreich
Burgenland
Wines from the 4 Austrian generic wine regions can make wine from how many permitted grape varieties and in what styles?
40 permitted grape varieties;
Any style.
What are the 3 quality levels for wine in Austria?
From lowest quality to highest:
Wein (no GI) Landwein (PGI) Qualitätswein or DAC (PDO, the vast majority of Austrian wine) DAC (Districtus Austriae Controllat) is a sub-catheory of QW.
What geographical indication may bottles of Wein, the lowest quality level of wine in Austria, carry?
Wines labeled ‘Wein’ may not have a specific geographical indication.
The labels will simply state that the wine is from Austria by using the term “Österreich” or “österreichischer Wein,” an equivalent to ‘Vin de France’.
What is Landwein’s geographic designation?
PGI, or Protected Geographic Indication
What is Qualitätswein’s geographic designation?
PDO.
Austrian Qualitätswein can come from either a ________ region or a ________ region.
SPECIFIC wine-growing region
GENERIC wine-growing region
In Austria, what are the designations under Qualitätswein?
The four federal states and 7 of the 16 smaller areas are designated for the production of Qualitätswein.
Within the Qualitätswein category, wines may also be labelled as:
* KLASSIK – wines with a vintage declared and showing varietal character
* RESERVE – dry wines with a minimum 13% abv, typically harvested and released later than the standard wines.
Wines can be made from 35 (or 42?) permitted grape varieties and in any style.
In Austria, the Prädikatsweine focus on medium-sweet and sweet wines.
What are the classifications of Prädikatswein?
There are 6 Prädikats levels:
- SPATLESE: means ‘late harvest’. Spätlese wines are made from grapes picked at least a week after the start of the standard harvest, at a minimum of 19 KMW.
- AUSLESE: means ‘selected harvest’. Auslese wines are made from ripe grapes (min. 21 KMW) affected to some degree by botrytis.
- BEERENAUSLESE (BA): means ‘berry selection’. Super-ripe grapes (min. 25 KMW) remain on the vine and are ‘selected’ only if affected by botrytis.
- AUSBRUCH: denotes a wine made exclusively from botrytis-affected berries. The most famous Ruster Ausbruch comes from the western shores of the Neusiedlersee.
- TROCKENBEERENAUSLESE (TBA): means ‘dry berry selection’. Grapes are left on the vine until reaching a botrytized and raisin-like state, with highly concentrated sugars (30 KMW).
- EISWEIN: means ‘ice wine’, and indicates that the grapes (min. 25 KMW) were harvested and pressed while naturally frozen.
STROHWEIN / SCHILFWEIN: literally ‘straw wine’ and ‘reed wine’. Grapes (min. 25 KMW) are air-dried, traditionally on mats made of straw or reeds, to concentrate their flavors and sugars.
(One degree KMW means 1g of sugar per 100g of grape must. )
In Austria, how many smaller wine regions have elected to become DAC?
Austria’s DAC wine classification system was introduced in 2001 (2003?). More than just a geographical indicator, each DAC title represents both a region and its definitive wine style.
9 Austrian DAC titles:
Eisenberg DAC (Blaufrankisch)
Kamptal DAC (Gruner Veltliner, Riesling)
Kremstal DAC (Gruner Veltliner, Riesling)
Leithaberg DAC (Gruner Veltliner, Weissburgunder, Chardonnay, Blaufrankisch)
Mittelburgenland DAC (Blaufrankisch)
Neusiedlersee DAC (Zweigelt)
Traisental DAC (Gruner Veltliner, Riesling)
Weinviertel DAC (Gruner Veltliner)
Wiener Gemischter Satz DAC (traditional white blend from Vienna)
Which Austrian DACs should you be familiar with for the exam?
How does a region become a DAC?
Weinviertel DAC (Gruner Veltliner)
Producers in a region must agree on a grape variety (or varieties), a style of wine(and a set of regulations to go with it) that they think best reflects their area, then the region can be awarded the DAC status.
Then, only wines that conform to this style can use the name of the appellation.
What is Strohwein (aka Schilfwein)?
How is it made?
STROHWEIN / SCHILFWEIN: literally ‘straw wine’ and ‘reed wine’. Grapes (min. 25 KMW) are air-dried, traditionally on mats made of straw or reeds, to concentrate their flavors and sugars.
What is Ruster Ausbruch DAC?
TBA wines from the city of Rust, situated on Lake Neusiedlersee, are labelled Ausbruch: it denotes a wine made exclusively from botrytis-affected berries.
The most famous of these, Ruster Ausbruch, comes from the western shores of the Neusiedlersee.
In terms of land and aspect, what do Wachau, Kremstal and Kamptal have in common?
Steep, often hand-built stone terraced, south -facing vineyards next to the Danube maximise exposure to the sun.
Hand harvesting.
They produce wines in a similar style and quality from either
Gruner Veltliner or Riesling.
How is it that the Grüners and Rieslings from Wachau, Kamptal, and Kremstal can achieve full ripeness and highly concentrated flavors when they’re at such a northerly latitude?
Which wine-growing area in Austria is largest in terms of size?
NIEDERÖSTERREICH
What was Austria’s first DAC, and what is the only grape allowed under that DAC?
Weinviertel in 2001
Grüner Veltliner
What are the two levels to Weinviertel DAC?
Klassikwinesmust be made in a light, fresh and
fruity style with no discernible oak flavours
Reserve wines must have a higher minimum alcohol and are
allowed to be matured in oak.
What are the characteristics of Klassik wine in Austria?
What are the characteristics of Reserve wine in Austria?
Within the Qualitätswein category, wines may also be labelled as:
- KLASSIK wines must be made in a light, fresh and
fruity style with no discernible oak flavours
- RESERVE wines must have a higher minimum alcohol and are
allowed to be matured in oak
What is the eastern region of Austria that borders Hungary?
BURGENLAND
What styles of wine is Burgenland best known for?
Top-quality sweet wines and red wines.
What are the principal red and white grapes grown in Burgenland?
Red: Zweigelt, Blaufrankisch and St Laurent.
White: Pinot Blanc, Welschriesling, Gruner Veltliner, Chardonnay.
What is Burgenland’s most planted red variety?
Zweigelt
Burgenland is warmed by winds coming from the _______.
Pannonian plain
What is the principal red grape in Mittelburgenland DAC?
Blaufränkisch
Neusiedlersee DAC is best known for red wines made from this grape.
Zweigelt
Autumn fog and high humidity around this lake in northern Burgenland allows for ideal botrytis conditions to make sweet wine.
What grape is commonly used for these sweet, botrytized wines?
Welschriesling
Can an Austrian Prädikatswein be labeled with a specific region where a DAC already exists for another style of wine?
If not, how must the wines be labeled?
Landwein may be labeled with a broad geographic area. What are these 3 broad geographic areas?
Weinland, Steirerland or Bergland
What is the must weight scale used in Austria?
KMW (Klosterneuburg Must Weight)
One degree KMW means 1g of sugar per 100g of grape must
What are the 3 main soil types found in Austria?
There are two major soil types;
- thin soils over rock (granite or gneiss, crystalline bedrock material known locally as Urgestein), and
- richer soils such as loess.
Other soil types include limestone and schist (such as on the Leithaberg hills) as well as gravel and volcanic material (such as in Steiermark and parts of Kamptal).
What is the word used for a single vineyard in Austria?
RIED
(Lage in Germany)
What are the classifications used by Vinea Wachau?
What styles and grapes are allowed?
- Steinfeder – Fruity, dry wine, with a maximum of 11.5% abv; the lightest style.
- Federspiel – A more concentrated, dry wine with alcohol ranging from 11.5–12.5% abv.
- Smaragd – Typically a highly concentrated, dry wine, with ripe fruit flavours; minimum 12.5% abv.
Grüner Veltliner and Riesling
There is a select group of producers in the Wachau that formed their own organization that categorizes wines from their region as they chose not to become a DAC.
What is the name of the organization?
Vinea Wachau
What is Wiener Gemischter Satz?
The vineyards in the Federal State of Vienna are situated around and in the capital city. Most wines produced are made to be consumed immediately in informal local premises that sell newly made wines from the current harvest.
The DAC is a white wine called Wiener Gemischter Satz and must be a blend, of which 20 different grape varieties are permitted. It must also be dry and unoaked.
