Austria Wset Diploma Unit 3

Front 1

Austrian wine laws

Back 1

1993 new laws introduced
Severe yield limits

Front 2

Austrian quality level system

Back 2

minimum must weights higher than Germany
Chaptalisation forbidden

Front 3

Austrian quality levels

Back 3

Spatlese
Auslese
Beerenauslese
Ausbruch
Trockenbeerenauslese
Strohwein (straw wines)
Eiswein

Front 4

Chaptalisation

Back 4

Forbidden

Front 5

Kabinett

Back 5

NOT a category in Austria for pradikatswien

Front 6

Strohwein

Back 6

Grapes dried on straw over winter
to concentrate flavours

Front 7

Austrian wine law levels

Back 7

Austrian wines are either wines with origin (Quality Wine, DAC, Landwein) or generic wines from Austria. The categories are defined by the origin of the grapes and the sugar content of the must, as expressed by the Klosterneuburg Must Weight (KMW) scale

Front 8

1st DAC

Back 8

The first wine-growing region to gain the DAC designated status was the Weinviertel, effective from the 2002 vintage for the fruity and peppery variety Grüner Veltliner, and labelled and sold as Weinviertel DAC.

Front 9

DAC introduced

Back 9

2002

Front 10

Number of DACs

Back 10

7

Front 11

List the DACs

Back 11

Weinviertal - GV
Mittleburgenland - Blauf.
Kremstal - GV + Riesling
Kamptal - GV + Riesling
Leithaberg - GV, Ries, Weisbur, Chard, Blauf,
Eisenberg - Blaufrankisch

Front 12

Dry quality wine terms

Back 12

The majority of dry Austrian wine is classified either as classic, medium bodied style (DAC, Klassik, Kabinett, Federspiel) or as the more weighty, opulent wine with cellaring potential (Reserve, DAC Reserve, Spätlese trocken, Smaragd, Lagen wine or Cuvées, blends).

Front 13

Niederosterreich sub regions

Back 13

North of Vienna
Weinviertel
Kremstal
Kamptal
Wachau

Front 14

Weinviertel

Back 14

1st DAC
must be fresh GV with no oak
(other styles from the region can't be DAC and must sell as Niederosterreich

Front 15

1st DAC
must be fresh GV with no oak

Back 15

Weinviertel

Front 16

climate

Back 16

central European
Short cold winters
Long warm summers
Long autumns can cause botrytis

Front 17

Gruner Veltliner plantings

Back 17

1/3 of all Austrian plantings

Front 18

Gruner Veltliner young

Back 18

green apple/white pepper in youth

Front 19

Gruner Veltliner aged

Back 19

Honey and toast with age

Front 20

Gruner Veltliner
oak use
minerality

Back 20

Low yields on some soils give exaggerated minerality
limited oak use

Front 21

Riesling

Back 21

Wachau, Kamptal, Kremsta
Dry
Full Bodied
Rich stone fruit
4% of plantings
complexity with age

Front 22

Welschriesling

Back 22

Good simple wine in Burgenland
Brilliant sweet wine in South
Susceptible to Botrytis

Front 23

Blaufrankisch

Back 23

Medium tannins
Crisp acid
peppery, sour cherry palate
Oak softens tannins and enhances sweet fruit
7% of plantings

Front 24

Zweigelt

Back 24

Blaufrankisch St Laurent cross (1922)
Bramble fruit
Deep colour
Soft tannins
14% of plantings
quality or lush Beaujolais style

Front 25

St Laurent

Back 25

Austrian native
similar to Pinot Noir
Blends with internationals
2% of plantings
black cherry fruit

Front 26

Austrian white grapes

Back 26

Gruner Veltliner
Riesling
Welschriesling

Front 27

Austrian red grapes

Back 27

Blaufrankisch
Zweigelt
St Laurent

Front 28

Viticulture

Back 28

Over 1/2 of growers part time
small plots
51ha of vines

Front 29

Vinification

Back 29

local market strong
stainless steel and new oak investment
GV often vinified in big old oak

Front 30

Soil - Lower Austria

Back 30

Loess (well draining, ideal)
best sites are hills with granite subsoil

Front 31

Black grape soils

Back 31

Rich alluvial near Danube

Front 32

Soil near Neusiedl (NE Burgenland)

Back 32

Sand

Front 33

Styria soils

Back 33

Hilly clay over limestone

Front 34

Lake

Back 34

Neusiedlersee
yearly noble rot so cheaper
BA, TBA, Ausbruch, Eiswein, Strohwein

Front 35

Burgenland

Back 35

4 sub regions around Neusiedlersee lake
Southern regions on Hungarian border produce fine Blaufrankisch reds and int. blends

Front 36

Styria production and regions

Back 36

8% of production
West Styria - acidic rose Blauer Wildbacher
South East Styria - excellent Chard & Sauv Blanc
South Styria - Excellent volcanic Gewurtz, much Welchriesling

Front 37

Wien

Back 37

Vineyards in city of Vienna
1.5% of production

Front 38

Austrian hl/ha rules

Back 38

Max 60 hl/ha