Riesling, Gelber Muskateller, and Scheurebe from Weinviertel, Niederösterreich, Austria; light bodied and dry, acid driven and tart, with white grapefruit and lime, lemon pith, high acid, and a tart finish. Needs food!

From Importer: Michael Gindl began making wine at his family estate in the Weinviertel while attending agricultural school in his teens. Now, at 33 years old, he’s one of the most riveting winemakers in Austria. Inspired by the wines of his grandfather, which were made with nearly no manipulation or intervention, he converted his winery and vineyards to Demeter biodynamics and began experimenting. The wines were certified biodynamic by Demeter from the 2014 vintage.

His 10 hectare vineyard is planted extremely densely, with 7,000-10,000 vines per hectare (compared to the average 3,000 vines common in the area) growing in loam and loess soil. This forces the vines to behave highly competitively, resulting in low yields of highly concentrated fruit. He uses cover crops to keep down weeds and pest control is handled by the buzzards (buteos) that roam the vineyards. Gindl has a fully biodynamic farm, complete with highland cattle, goats, wheat, vegetables and fruits.