Comments on: Three questions with Christine Saahs of Nikolaihof, Wachau

By: jason carey

jason carey — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 01:50:55 +0000

I just tasted her stuff at the Theese tasting and was mesmerized, I have liked their wines in the past, but 07 is stellar,, and the library release that that had was sublime.. too bad i can’t afford to stock it.

By: Christian Jessen

Christian Jessen — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 11:21:28 +0000

Hi Doc Vino !! Great to see you having one of the better and renown wineproducers from Austria !! I must object on some of what she says however …. Conc. organic growers – whether in Germany or Austria 2008 is not a highlight !! Rot-infections set in too early – partially before time of ripening … making this a feeble vintage – no comparison to 2007 !! But as always winemakers have to sell the latest vintage – compare these attempts to 2008 Bordeaux and you will see what I mean !! Nevertheless as always – at least 20 % good wines will be found in these regions !! And … judge for yourself !! Don´t let anybody – including myself – tell you what you like !!

Oh yeah, one last word about alcohol contents :
Off course, global warming will bring more color,sugar and consequently more alcohol into Riesling – this must however not be a drawback !! But in general Mrs. Saahs is right – Riesling should not have too much of it !!

And again …. Spaetlese – does not imply sweetness !!!! 90 % and more german Spaetlese wines made and consumed in Germany are dry … look for the word “trocken” … its just that the anglo-american market cannot cope with the high acidity and thus prevers sweet wines !!

Try a “Trocken” Spaetlese Wines or “Erstes Gewaechs” ( equivalent to Premieur Cru ) and you might well be astonished !! )))

By: Dylan

Dylan — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 02:31:48 +0000

I love how warm and candid she was in your interview. Do you agree with her Hefeabzug being like a natural energy drink? (Of course, you are young, so the results may vary).

By: richard

richard — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 20:14:01 +0000

Bryan has part of it correct. Austrians generally ferment to 100% dry, so alcohol levels are higher than a German Spatlese, where fermentation has been stopped short. Add to that the fact that it’s warmer and easier to pick riper grapes in Austria, and you can have problems. I would say in Austria, like in many different countries, you have producers that pick too ripe, chase Parker scores, and end up with “hot wines,” as well as producers who have a more balanced approach and produce wonderful dry riesling at anything from 12 to 13.5%. For the Wachau, stay away from FX and Hirztberger if you don’t want over-ripeness, and stick with Nikolaihof, Prager, and Alzinger.

By: Wine Club Insider

Wine Club Insider — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 04:05:06 +0000

What Ms. Saahs has to say about high alcohol wines.. especially Riesling. I’ve been a Riesling lover for some time now, and I’ve even given the occasional Riesling-specific wine club gift to people whom I think would appreciate it as much as I do. It does seem to me that there are quite a few popular Austrian rieslings out there that are “up there” as far as alcohol content, but like she said, perhaps that has more to do with such samples getting higher marks from bloggers, professional tasters, and so forth.

I’m sure the issue of alcohol content comes down to preference for consumers as well though. Although that’s not really a factor for me one way or the other in regards to whether or not I really fall in love with a particular wine, I know that some of my friends and peers prefer the ones with higher alcohol content — not just for the effect, but for the element it lends to the wine’s flavor.

However, I can definitely understand not wanting to be muddled because you decided to sit down in front of the fire with a bottle of wine on a relaxing winter evening. Those are usually the times when I reach for my go-to roses, especially if I’m looking to enjoy it in tandem with a nice wheel of brie or some comfort food I plan on snacking on throughout the evening. My favorite roses are relatively low in alcohol as well — around 10%. Many of those were discoveries made through my wine club site wineclubguide.com as well.

By: Dr. Vino

Dr. Vino — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 02:47:09 +0000

Hi Bryan,

That question actually was inspired from an interview posted here earlier this month.

Cheers,

By: Bryan

Bryan — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 01:36:59 +0000

I’m wondering if your experience with Austrian Rieslings motivated the high alcohol question?

Are they letting their grapes ripen more than Germany, than fermenting til bone dry?

Is there less arrested fermentation?

I assumed Austria was cooler so brix levels wouldn’t get all that high?

Cheers!