Pratsch Rotenpullen Gruner Veltliner 2021
Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesThis white is balanced, with well-integrated acidity serving as the backbone. It’s texturally interesting with charming minerality and savory notes on the finish.
At their family winery, located in Weinviertal in lower Austria, organic is the top priority. We are convinced that organic winegrowing should be conceived as a holistic thinking and practice. It is important to provide ideal growing conditions so their wines can develop the best possible quality.” - Stefan Pratsch
Their single vineyards include Rotenpüllen (Alluvial soil with löss and clay), Steinberg (Alluvial soil with lime and loam). THE MAIN VINEYARDS: Eben am Berg (Alluvial soil, loam, lime and clay), Hoferthal (Loam, clay and black earth), Satz (Loam and clay, black earth), Sandgrube (Sandstone and loam).
Organic since 1995. Today it more important than ever to respect nature and live according to its rules, this applies as well for viticulture. The Pratsch family, Wilhelm and Anneliese and their son, Stefan, have operated their Niederosterreich estate under organic certification since 1995. The vines here are over 50 years old and now 30 years under organic growth. Organic winemaking incorporates more than ever the holistic thinking and action. This means to let nature’s ways occur with just very soft guidance and the least amount of intervention. This expresses the essence of organic winemaking. All of this attention to detail and dedication to the purity of the land by Stefan and the Pratsch family is translated directly into the quality of the wines that are a true reflection of their terroir.The background of their family goes back about 8 generations. Their ancestors had always lived in Hohenruppersdorf with a domain consisting of livestock, normal agriculture (wheat, barley) and a few hectares of vines. Wilhelm Pratsch, Stefan’s father, took over in the early 80s.
Organic since 1995. Today it more important than ever to respect nature and live according to its rules, this applies as well for viticulture. The Pratsch family, Wilhelm and Anneliese and their son, Stefan, have operated their Niederosterreich estate under organic certification since 1995. The vines here are over 50 years old and now 30 years under organic growth. Organic winemaking incorporates more than ever the holistic thinking and action. This means to let nature’s ways occur with just very soft guidance and the least amount of intervention. This expresses the essence of organic winemaking. All of this attention to detail and dedication to the purity of the land by Stefan and the Pratsch family is translated directly into the quality of the wines that are a true reflection of their terroir.
Appreciated for superior wines made from indigenous varieties, Austria should be on the radar of any curious wine drinker. A rather cool and dry wine growing region, this country produces wine that is quintessentially European in style: food-friendly with racy acidity, moderate alcohol and fresh fruit flavors.
Austria’s viticultural history is rich and vast, dating back to Celtic tribes with first written record of winemaking starting with the Romans. But the 20th century brought Austria a series of winemaking obstacles, namely the plunder of both world wars, as well as its own self-imposed quality breach. In the mid 1980s, after a handful of shameless vintners were found to have added diethylene glycol (a toxic substance) to their sweet wines to imitate the unctuous qualities imparted by botrytis, Austria’s credibility as a wine-producing country was compromised. While no one was harmed, the incident forced the country to rebound and recover stronger than ever. By the 1990s, Austria was back on the playing field with exports and today is prized globally for its quality standards and dedication to purity and excellence.
Grüner Veltliner, known for its racy acidity and herbal, peppery aromatics, is Austria's most important white variety, comprising nearly a third of Austrian plantings. Riesling in Austria is high in quality but not quantity, planted on less than 5% of the country’s vineyard land. Austrian Rieslings are almost always dry and are full of bright citrus flavors and good acidity. Red varietal wines include the tart and peppery Zweigelt, spicy and dense Blaufränkisch and juicy Saint Laurent. These red varieties are also sometimes blended.
Fun to say and delightfully easy to drink, Grüner Veltliner calls Austria its homeland. While some easily quaffable Grüners come in a one-liter—a convenient size—many high caliber single vineyard bottlings can benefit from cellar aging. Somm Secret—About 75% of the world’s Grüner Veltliner comes from Austria but the variety is gaining ground in other countries, namely Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and the United States.