Hello; For those who have not noted my absence, I´ve been away Monday-Saturday. I have been to Austria, a small place called Trins, in a perfectly beautiful valley between Innsbruck and the Brennerpass. Of virtually no interest for the down and out oenophiliac, were it not for the fact that it is about 80 minutes by Volvo from Bolzano, in Alto Adige (or, Süd-Tirol) on the Italian side of afore mentioned pass. I brought (almost) all the gang, to wit, 11 persons, along to visit a sample of wine producers in the small villages South of Bolzano. Since you don´t just come barging in with 11 noisy Swedes, I had made prior arrangements, which came off fairly well considering that we were close to a holiday joined to a week-end and a lot of people were off on holidays. First stop, Franz Haas in Montan. Busy and crowded tasting room cum office; An appointment? We had called the day before? So sorry, cluemeter reads zero ... no matter. We were particularly pleased by their reds: a Pinot Nero 2001 "Klassischer Linie" EU 12.90 [C] Slightly brownish tones, fairly pal [N] Fudge, leather, butterscotch [P] Fruit, some acids, soft tannines and Lagrein 2001 EU 10.60 [C] Purple, dark, very leggy [N] Dark fruit, wood champignons, fiery [P] Very forcefull, oak, very good length, tannic - in for some quality cellar time
Next, on to Elena Walch, Tramin. The lady herself presiding. Here, the whites were dominant. Chardonnay 2001 EU 12.50 [C] Light (this was a dominant feature of all the whites - they were farily light, with all producers, regardless of varietal) [N] Rich, fruit, floral [P] Rich, fruity, hint of oak (French oak from Allier, I asked) Gewürztraminer 2001 EU 12 [C] [N] "Flower garden on a warm June day" [P] Totally dry, some acids, very good concentration and typicity Merlot 2001 EU 9.20 [C] Dense, purple going towards grenadine [N] Dry, black berries, mineral, animal notes [P]
I have stuck to the ones I bought but I´d like to ,mention the Lagrein, out of interest - it was very dense with a nose of almonds, cherry pits and cherries, but on the palate dry, short, tannic and totally mute. Possibly this would have evolved over time, but I didn´t dare.
Last visit, after lunch on the restaurant Castel Ringberg (owned by Elena Walch), St. Michael-Eppan. A large and busy place, very well-thought out tasting room cum sales point, except understaffed. Goldmuskateller 2002 (EU 6.70?) [C] [N] Incredibly intense, typical of the varietal? I thought at first it was a Gewürztraminer. [P] Continues intense, fruit, very little acid
Pinot Grigio 2002 EU 7.50 [C] [N] Sweet, honey. abricot [P] Good concetration
Blauburgunder 2000 EU 10.70 [N] Concentrated pinot noir nose, leather, red fruits (more Savigny-les-Beaune than VOlnay) [P] Rich, young, concentrated, thick - seductive
Spumante EU 11.70 [N] Fairly rich and fruity, mineral [P] Fresh, dry, fruity, very pleasing
The discerning reader may note a tendency to loose concentration on behalf of yours truly as the day continues. This, despite spitting frequently and never consciously swallowing.
A reflection: there was something about the district that reminded me of Alsace (which in my book is a praise). A lot of the varietals are the same, or there are varietals reminiscent, such as Pinot Blanc, Gris and Noir, Rieasling, Gewürztraminer (which indeed claims its descent from Tramin in the region), Goldmuskateller, and Müller Thurgau. Also the landscape is slightly reminiscent of the Vosges, mbut more impressive. Perhaps also the fact that it is an intersection between a Roman and a German language? If anything, the wines in Alto ADieg gives the impression of being ever so slightly paler than their Alsatian counterparts - if you forgive me for being overly generalising. Then, there are in Alto Adige very good examples of the 'international' varietals - Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, and, apparently Cabernet Sauvignon (only they weree not avaliable in any of the cantinas we visited). Finally, there are the autochtonous varietals, not least the majestic LAgrein. To quote an Austrian: I´ll be back.
ACknowledgment: While several persons have taken an interest in my travel plans, sometimes to the extent of driving me bananas because of the irrelevance of their suggestions;), I would particularly thank Mrs Reka Hukari Ranigler, and her husband, for several long and informative e-mails and taking a personal itnerest in this. Mrs Ranigler is, AAMF, an employee of the Alto Adige firm Alois LAgeder who were at the time closed for holidays.
Cheers!
Nils Gustaf