Weingut Bernhard Ott Grüner Veltliner Ried Rosenberg Wagram DAC 2018

In recent years, Bernhard Ott has looked to update his winery’s practices—in the field and the cellar—using old methods. Composting, with manure from a local farm, not only alleviates the need for chemical fertilizers but also improves the overall health of the soil. “The compost helps with water regulation,” Ott says. “Healthy soils give water when the weather is dry and take it back when there is too much. This also means no irrigation at all.” Ott and his team harvest by hand at full ripeness, but their use of compost to regulate water, along with other biodynamic farming practices, keeps the sugar in the grapes to a moderate level. Fermentation is done whole cluster, and the cellar is kept cold to inhibit malolactic fermentation. This grüner veltliner comes from Bernhard’s premier vineyard, Rosenberg, in the Wagram DAC. At a relatively high altitude, in an amphitheater open to the south, the oldest vines in the domaine grow in deep, calcareous soils. Savory and salty, herbal and silky, this is grüner at its complex best. Apple, pear, spice, and flint lead to a persistent lemon finish. Certified biodynamic.