Steiermark, or Styria, is the southernmost wine producing region in Austria, based around the city of Graz and stretching out towards the border with Slovenia. The hilly terrain and the region's cool take on the Mediterranean Climate mean that viticulture here is markedly different from the rest of Austria.
Steiermark's specialties include Sauvignon Blanc, wines made from the Traminer family and Schiclher, a rustic local rosé made from Blauer Wildbacher. Hardonnay">Chardonnay (often labeled "Morillon"), Weissburgunder and Welschriesling are other important varieties grown here.
While three quarters of the grapes grown in Steiermark are white wine varieties, some good red wines are made here as well. Zweigelt, Pinot Noir and Saint-Laurent all perform admirably in the region's Terroir.
Steiermark is one of Austria's smaller wine producing regions. It is responsible for around seven percent of the national wine output, and most of the wines made in the region are consumed here as well.
Just over 4,600 hectares (11,400 acres) of Vineyard land is spread out across the DAC regions of Weststeiermark, Südsteiermark and Vulkanland (previously Südoststeiermark). The terrain here is hilly, almost mountainous, and many of the vineyards are planted on steep slopes to take advantage of sunlight and the prevailing winds.
The majority of vineyards across the wider region are planted on the sedimentary soils of the so-called Styrian Basin, formed from alpine wash flowing towards the Pannonian basin below (towards Burgenland and the Neusiedler lake). The remainder are found either on hard, apline rock or coarse alluvial deposits lower in the Styrian basin itself.
Intraspecific crossing between the saint laurent and the limberger realized in 1922 and in Austria by Fritz Zweigelt (1888/1964) who named it rotburger. Very well known in Austria, it can be found in most Eastern countries, Japan, Germany, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy, Canada, the United States, etc. In France, it is not very well known and yet this variety has interesting qualities when vinified as a single variety for both red and rosé wines. - Synonyms: rotburger, klosterneuburger, zweigelt blau, blauer-zweigelt in Germany, zweigeltrebe in Austria, Great Britain and the Czech Republic, blauer zwelgetrabe in Hungary, etc. (for all the synonyms of the grape varieties, click here !)
pink wines from the region of Steiermark go well with generally quite well with dishes of veal, pork or game (deer, venison) such as recipes of provencal veal tendrons, pulled pork (us pulled pork ) or rabbit stew the old fashioned way.
As a wine critic, witnessing a relatively unknown estate rise up and receive the recognition it deserves can be a bittersweet feeling. From a purely selfish point of view, you watch the prices rise inexorably so you can no longer afford to drink wines from that estate as often as you once did. But primarily you’re delighted for the owners and for those who have discovered their wines. Scroll down for Matt Walls’ tasting notes and scores for five vintages of Domaine Gonon St-Joseph {"c ...
Writing in the Oeno One journal, researchers said climate data showed a significant increase in average growing season temperatures in both Napa and Bordeaux, particularly since the 1980s. So far the warmer conditions have generally contributed to better average wine quality, noted the authors, from the University of Bordeaux’s ISVV Institut des Sciences de la Vigne et du Vin and UC Davis. Yet, they questioned how long this would continue. The authors said: ‘In Napa and Bordeaux, viticulture has ...
Of all the columns I’ve written this year, this one should have been the easiest to write: open my tasting notes file, sort by year 2021, sort by score, select the top ten highest scoring wines, copy and paste. Go to the pub. But it’s not that simple. Some wines are technically perfect and undeniably excellent, wines I respect greatly that deserve their high scores – but on a personal level, they leave me a little cold. Scroll down to see tasting notes and scores for Matt Walls’ top ...
