2018 Alzinger Grüner Veltliner Federspiel Dürnstein

(88 Points) From sandy-gravelly soils between the villages, the 2018 Grüner Veltliner Federspiel Dürnstein offers a clear, fresh and even coolish nose of white seed fruits, ripe melons and pebbly stones. The palate is lithe, elegant and fresh, and the white fruit flavors lead to a lovely bitter and well-structured, crispy finish. Stunning.  Issue Date, 31st Mar 2020. Source- End of March 2020, The Wine Advocate

Leo Alzinger produced the usual series of wines in 2018. For him, 2018 is another excellent vintage after 2017, especially for Riesling and also Grüner Veltliner, the latter he prefers to the 2017s due to the expressive fruit character. The acidity was lower in 2018 than in 2017, but compared to 2003, a forerunner of the dry and warm twin vintages 2017/18, it is significantly higher and ranks between six grams per liter for the Federspiel category and five grams per liter for the Smaragd wines (which is a plus of more than 10% compared to 2003). "We have learned a lot since then," says Alzinger, referring to the green covers, the canopy management that protects the grapes from too much sunlight and helps ensure the right harvest dates. The alcohol levels are between 13% for Riesling and a maximum of 13.5% for Grüner Veltliner. "That's less than we were expecting in August when the sugar levels were rising far too quickly compared to the physiological ripeness. Yet the significant rainfalls in the second week of September (70 mm in three days) were more than welcome and diluted the high must weights again," reports Alzinger. Veltliner has thicker skins and is therefore not very sensitive for botrytis but Riesling is, so Alzinger was forced to discard 25% to 30% of the crop.