ANTONIO GALLONI - VINOUS 96 POINTS The 2022 Riesling Heiligenstein is from core parcels of the site, where cool Waldviertel air meets the warm Pannonian influence. This 2022 vintage is the first where the Lyra- and Guyot-trained vines were co-harvested and co-fermented. The nose has a subtle note of cypress, with a touch of smokiness and a suspicion of green citrus peel. The palate adds a riper notion of juicy white peach, but remains framed with tingling citrus. Both elements together result in immense juiciness, showing a svelte exuberance that, for now, skips over stony minerality, which will take time to reveal itself. This is beautiful, taut, long and serene. (Bone-dry)
WINE ADVOCATE - 94 POINTS The 2022 Riesling Ried Heiligenstein 10TW shows notes of ripe Riesling seeds reminiscent of mocha on the dense, delicately creamy and spicy, remarkably complex and stony bouquet. Green but juicy on the palate, again with notes of roasted mocha beans, this Heiligenstein is very fine, elegant, uniquely purist in style, pleasantly firm and intensely saline, even if it was still little approachable in the fall. It pulls together well on the finish. This is very promising. 13% stated alcohol. Natural cork. Tasted in Grafenegg, September 2023. Published: May 23, 2024
JAMES SUCKLING - 94 POINTS Enticingly nose with complex aromas of fresh garden flowers and dried flowers, also dried and fresh pear. Racy and driving with an exciting cassis freshness on the very focused palate. Very stony finish. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold.
Savvy wine connoisseurs have a phrase that is extremely important when it comes to wine. That phrase, Quality to Price Ratio (QPR), is how many consumers and professionals pick out wine. When a wine is of high quality and doesn’t cost an arm and a leg, then we like to say the wine has an amazing QPR. One of the noble grapes with some of the best QPRs is Riesling—especially Riesling from Austria!
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STORE NOTES: When most think of Austria they think of Gruner Veltliner, but Riesling is also a shining star in this country! In Kamptal (one of Austria’s most prestigious wine regions) lies the estate of Weingut Brundlmayer. They’re often regarded as one of the top wineries in all of Austria! They work with a number of vineyard sites in Kamptal, with some parcels being planted in the 1920’s.
Kamptal is home to one of the most prestigious Riesling sites in all of Austria, Heilgenstein; and the Brundlmayer family owns 12 hectares right in the center. Heiligenstein’s steep slopes sit on roughly 270-million-year-old Permian desert sandstone, dotted with volcanic material and fossilized traces of ancient vegetation. The site benefits from warm daytime winds and sharp nighttime cooling through the Kamp Valley, a combination that gives the vineyard its distinctive energy and depth.
Weingut Bründlmayer’s Ried Heiligenstein 1ÖTW Riesling (Ried meaning single vineyard and 1ÖTW being Austria’s Premier Cru equivalent) is a serious bottle of dry Riesling with a lot going on. It starts off pretty tight, but after a few minutes in the glass (a short time in the decanter wouldn’t hurt) and you get pink grapefruit, Sorrento lemon, tangerine, pear, white flowers, herbs, and plenty of flint and stony minerality. It is bone-dry, concentrated, and bright!. There is a ton of fruit in the glass, but the mineral side of the wine is just as important, helping keep the wine balanced and focused while giving it plenty of “electricity”.
Importantly, there is a lot more here than just citrus and acid. You get a little smoke, peppercorn, snap pea, cool spice, and that faint petrol note Riesling fans love, all wrapped around a textured, mineral-driven palate. The finish hangs on with citrus zest, stone fruit, and a salty, spicy edge that begs the palate for another sip. It is drinking beautifully, especially alongside seafood, roast chicken, or richer pork dishes, but it also has the structure to age if you can manage to leave a few bottles alone.
