I can’t believe that the notoriously misnamed “antifreeze” wine scandal of 20 years ago is still a stumbling block.
Perhaps it’s that people wrongly associate Austrian wines with traditional German styles. In fact, they are quite different. The sumptuous sweet wines excepted, Austria’s whites are dry and steely, and there are some terrific rieslings. However, the most important grape is the indigenous grüner veltliner, which has peachy fruit, grapefruit zing and pepper, herb, smoke or mineral flavours, with, sometimes, a hint of honey. Grüners can be lightweight, but the better ones have body, structure and acidity, making them versatile with food. Don’t take my word for it: try the three below.
2004 Felsner Grüner Veltliner, Moosburgerin, £7.99
Fresh and rounded, with flavours of pears and herbs (Waitrose)
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2003 Weinrieder Weissburgunder, Birthal, £8.49
Rich, peach-perfumed, lightly spicy pinot blanc (Oddbins)
2004 Salomon Riesling, Pfaffenberg, £9.99
Intense and lingering, with citrus and apple fruit (Oddbins) Anorak fact: at least 20 people died after drinking wine to which methanol had been illegally added to boost its alcohol content
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WINE BLUFF
“The most serious modern wine scandal was in Italy in 1986”
Anorak fact: at least 20 people died after drinking wine to which methanol had been illegally added to boost its alcohol content