Weingut Bernhard Ott Feuersbrunner Spiegel Gruner Veltliner Erste OTW Lage, Wagram 2013 750ML ($59.95) Buy Now: $49 special
Why we love it: Length and layers. There’s the pretty, initial fruit and then everything which follows. That kick of ginger and spice is particularly lovely, and I was struck with a nostalgic reflectiveness once the bottle had emptied. – Tyler
David Schildknecht–Vinous 93 points “Honey, white peach and quince allied to hints of truffle and kelp put one in mind of certain very rich Chenins. Full yet barely over 13% in alcohol, and boasting lusciously satisfying primary juiciness, this takes on more typical Grüner Veltliner characteristics in the mid-palate in the form of caramelized parsnip, snap pea and blond tobacco, not to mention the white pepper, allied with ginger, that informs its long mouthwateringly savory and buoyant finish. Fruit from these vines, noted Ott, was especially affected by millerandage and consequently concentrated. A mere 600 liters were harvested from the Spiegel’s eight hectares!”
Wine Advocate 92 points “The 2013 Grüner Veltliner Spiegel Erste Lage is Ott’s third vintage of this Feuersbrunn cru which carries a mix of very old and very young vines which are cultivated on south-facing terraces in 280 to more than 300 meters above sea level and well protected to the northwest by the Hengstberg gravel ridge. The soils, derived from a massive blanket of loess that is draped over the Gföhler gneiss bedrock, marine sediments, and ancient gravels of the Danube River, are calcareous and silty and, in 2013, bore a light golden colored, tropical flavored, rich, sweet and harmonious Veltliner of great intensity and elegance. It intermixes ripe peach and mango aromas with tobacco and mineral flavors and develops a great length which makes the Spiegel on a par with the Rosenberg., the former more sweet, the latter more subtle perhaps.” WA