Lagler Grüner Veltliner, Axpoint, Smaragd | 2022

The Lagler family has lived in the Wachau since the 18th century, but only began bottling estate wines in the 1970s. Everything is done by hand, and Lagler is still one of most underrated and satisfying producers in Austria. Axpoint is a sloped site within a sheltered basin surrounding the village of Spitz. The noble soil for Grüner is loess, a wind-transported soil which consists mainly of silt, the size of a grain that is smaller than a coarse sand but bigger than a fine tennis court clay. Its minerals are plentiful, dominated by quartz, feldspars, micas, and calcite (carbonate), and iron oxides makes its color yellowish-brown color. The Smaragd labelling refers to the highest level of grape ripeness, and Lagler's grapes are fermented to a dry and unctuous style of wine. Fermented and aged in big old barrels, this is an exceptional example of clean and decadent Grüner without any hints of botrytis. On the palate it rolls deep with Asian greens, yellow apple, coffee bean, and truffled earth. Lifted by a cold and crunchy acidity and gingery spice, Lagler reminds us why Grüner Veltliner is, perhaps, the world’s greatest gastronomic wine. ~Allegra A