Radikal Grüner Veltliner, Herbert Zillinger

The 2019 Grüner Veltliner Radikal is intense in its golden-yellow color as well as in its bouquet that is as intense and fruity as it is floral—an exciting mix that also integrates the yeasty notes from one year of sur lie aging. Fruity, fresh and piquant on the palate, this is a dense and aromatic, round and elegant Veltliner that is sourced from the oldest vines in Ebenthal and Ollersdorf (so, on loess and limestone soils). A small part was partly fermented on the mash. - Stephan Reinhardt

Leuchtendes Gelbgrün, Silberreflexe. Einladende Kräuterwürze, frische gelbe Birnenfrucht, zart nach Ringlotten und kandierten Mandarinenzesten, rauchige Mineralik. Saftig, reife Papaya und Mango, frischer Apfel, finessenreich strukturiert, mineralisch-salziger Nachhall, ein kompakter Speisenbegleiter, ausgestattet mit Würze und Länge.

Selection of their oldest vines from the best vineyards of both Ebenthal and Ollersdorf. 'A wine that combines both the advantages of loess soil and limestone.' The must runs directly from the press into the large wooden barrel and is aged there on yeast lees for a year. One year in barrel, one year in bottle. 'For us from the barren year of 2017 probably our most complete and possibly best wine so far.' Very heady on the nose but lively and fresh on the palate. Lots of energy and intensity. Really bounces around the palate on the finish. So ripe you might think it was going to be a little sweet but it's not at all. Such excitement. Long and dense but with lift too. Masterful. - Jancis Robinson MW

The 2017 Grüner Veltliner Radikal is a selection from the oldest vines from the very best vineyards in Ebenthal and Ollersdorf and thus combines the character of loess with calcareous sandstone. Vinified in large oak casks for one year, the wine shows a yellow-golden color and opens with a clear, pure, complex and elegant bouquet of concentrated and spicy yellow-fleshed fruits and crushed stones. Nice phenolic notes add further excitement. Lush and perfectly round on the palate, this is a textured, almost sweetish, very powerful and phenolic, structured yet very elegant wine with a firm, initially even demanding and drying finish. Herbert Zillinger considers his 2017 Radikal the finest wine of his career so far, but you have to be patient to agree. The wine needs a lot of air and time and drinks almost like a Pinot Noir. A universal glass is too small, so get out your tallest Bordeaux or Burgundy glasses and a decanter. - Stephan Reinhardt

From the Zillingers’ oldest vines, and treated to extended pre-fermentative skin contact, this was last tasted in June 2016 from cask, where it still lay on its full lees, due for late summer or early fall bottling. Ripe quince, apple, and caramelized turnip tinged with orange zest and fresh ginger feature on an expansive, polished palate, leading to a long finish, to which stony impingements, peppery bite and subtle salinity lend invigoration and saliva-inducement. This represents an adept alliance of richness and polish with positive phenolic intensity. - David Schildknecht

Firm, deep, complex nose, still rather closed, vegetal and light yeasty notes, yellow fruit, nutty, light floral and prominent mineral notes, some olive oil and acacia flowers. Fairly firm again on the palate, ripe, very juicy fruit, yeasty, floral and herbaceous notes, some yellow spice, peppery traces, hint of bacon, persistent, concentrated, deep and complex, hint of dark berries, full-bodied, but also has cool elements, still very young, touch of green olives on a long, complex, juicy, spicy finish. currently in an interim phase, still needs some time to mature.

Mittleres Goldgelb, Silberreflexe. Nuancen von Blütenhonig, reife Tropenfrucht, kräuterwürzige, zart balsamische Nuancen, kandierte Orangenzesten. Saftig, elegant, angenehme Fruchtsüße, dezenter Säurebogen, feiner Walnusstouch im Abgang, ein gut ausgereifter Speisenbegleiter, bereits gut zugänglich. - Peter Moser