A Little Note on Wauchau Valley Wines

Located in Austria along the Danube River between the village of Melk and Krems, Wauchau is a small wine region in the Western part of the country that usually accounts for only around 3% of Austria’s wine production. Terraced vineyards consist of rock with intermittent layers of silt, clay & sand. Wauchau uses a classification system based on alcohol levels. 1) The lightest wines, Steinfeder, for wines with an alcohol level under 11.5% 2) and the ripest, Federspeil, for wines between 11.5 and 12.5% alcohol and 3) Smaragd, for wines over 12.5% alcohol. Wines from Wachau are labeled by varietal with the listed varietal needing to constitute at least 85% of the blend. Similarly, at least 85% of the grapes from a given harvest must come from the vintage year on the label. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wachau_wine
I tried two wines from Wauchau on my recent trip through the area.

   Church in Wachau Austria

vineyard

Wachau Valley – Austria vineyard

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stift Meck Jamek
Jochinger Stewwand Reisling
2013
€9.90 = $13.86
Purchased at Melk Abby
www.weingut-jamek.at

AND

Harm
Reisling Lösslagen Kremstal DAC
2013
€7.90 = $11.06
Purchased in Melk
www.weinschwaermer.at

Both wines were a dry reisling, a bit one dimensional with a grapeiness that you would expect to find in a French Hybrid from PA or NY, not from an Austrian Reisling. Definitely not what I was expecting, and might I say a little disappointed.

While on the boat (www.vikingrivercruises.com) their “House Wines” were a Grüner Veltliner that was at best quaffable, and a red wine that was well… a red wine. One evening they did pour a Sylvaner in a bocksbeutel shaped bottle. I didn’t get the vintner, but this was the best wine of the trip. It had several layers of ripe fruit flavors and a respectable length aftertaste. This should have been their “House Wine”.

Bocksbeutel shaped bottle

*Emerald Art Services, LLC provides wine appraisals for Insurance, Claims, Prenuptial Agreements, Purchase, Liquidation and Divorce. We also provide cellar inventories, software and cellar organization. Litigation consulting is also available.