It's Austrian Wine's World and We're Just Living In It
At least in Brooklyn. And maybe also Philadelphia. And probably everywhere else. Plus, a dozen bottle recommendations for Austrian whites beyond grüner.
My new neighborhood bar in Philadelphia, Bad Brother, has a late-night happy hour. Last night—as a group of High-Life-swilling Temple University football coaches chanted so loudly that the bartender almost tossed them out—I ordered the house white. That house white, during happy hour, is a $6 glass of Austrian grüner veltliner.
Take a bow, Austrian Wine Marketing Board. If grüner veltliner is now being poured in this context, then Austrian wine has insinuated itself deep into the fabric of America. In the late Obama years, we were talking about grüner veltliner as an “obscure” variety, something to be “discovered.” Times have certainly changed.
I’ve had Austrian wines on the brain this week. That’s mainly because, last weekend, I attended Karakterre, “the leading wine festival and community showcasing organic, biodynamic, and natural wines, as well as farming practices of Central and Eastern Europe.” Austrian wines are a major part of Karakterre, which happened this year in Domino Park, along the East River in Williamsburg, Brooklyn—which, of course it did.
When the Austrians come to town, this means Team Everyday Drinking has an occasion to dip its toes into New York’s natural-wine scene, and so we attended the Markus Altenburger takeover at Babysips, the Elias Muster takeover at Rhodora, and a few other spots on our Everyday Drinking Wine Bar Index. I still don’t understand how you can open a wine bar without a menu, and make people wait in line for a private little consultation with the sommelier for their by-the-glass order, then have them sit on the ground to wait for their food. But hey, I live in Philadelphia, so what do I know.
Anyway, Karakterre was a super fun event, and I got to taste a lot of Austrian wine. During the sunny, crisp autumn morning, I decided to focus on whites. I expected to taste a lot of grüner veltliner, but what immediately struck me was the array of Austrian whites that were not GV. I tasted a bunch of great weissburgunder (pinot blanc), grauburgunder (pinot gris), welschriesling, neuburger, sauvignon blanc, muscat, and even chardonnay—many of these in blends, sometimes with grüner veltliner.
I’d found the same things at a few recent trade tastings. After years of writing about Austrian wine, and being focused on grüner veltliner, it’s refreshing to see some of Austria’s other grapes explored. Not that I don’t love grüner veltliner—it’s what I pour at home most often. But the diversity of grapes, and the quality of winemaking, suggests that Austrian wine is entering an even more advanced era.
12 Austrian Whites Beyond Grüner
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