Last night we had wines from the fringe - hey, that's what wine education is about, learning new varietals, exploring new regions, and remembering what it is you like about your favorites. grin. We started with a Pinot Auxerroic. I'm not even going to tag that varietal as I've never had it before and don't anticipate having it again. Interesting name, white, Alsace, and that's all I remember about it.
Second up was a Grüner Veltliner called Vienna by Wolfgang. Bet you already know it was from Austria... It was made from third pick grapes, and had an interesting contrast - the nose was sweet, the wine was somewhere between sweet and dry, and it had minerality, prominent oak, and it was a bit bitter both on the nose and on the front of my tongue while still having a tart finish with some sweet fruit. It was straw colored. I have to say their marketing has some potential in the states with people who missed the 60's but wish they hadn't - Austrian Gruner Veltliner is being marked on the bottles as Gru-Vee - I can imagine 60's psychadelic colors and fonts on a label selling well with that being prominent. lol. Tasted February 28, 2009.
More to come later, it was an interesting and educational start to the class for the night.
Second up was a Grüner Veltliner called Vienna by Wolfgang. Bet you already know it was from Austria... It was made from third pick grapes, and had an interesting contrast - the nose was sweet, the wine was somewhere between sweet and dry, and it had minerality, prominent oak, and it was a bit bitter both on the nose and on the front of my tongue while still having a tart finish with some sweet fruit. It was straw colored. I have to say their marketing has some potential in the states with people who missed the 60's but wish they hadn't - Austrian Gruner Veltliner is being marked on the bottles as Gru-Vee - I can imagine 60's psychadelic colors and fonts on a label selling well with that being prominent. lol. Tasted February 28, 2009.
More to come later, it was an interesting and educational start to the class for the night.
