To Grüner, or not to Grüner ????

To Grüner, or not to Grüner ???? The answer is YES, pick up a Grüner Veltliner (Grüner for short) and enjoy Austria's lesser known white wine. For years Riesling was what first came to mind when thinking about great Austrian wines. Over the last 5 or 6 years Grüner has continued to grow here in the U.S. and nearly every good restaurant and wine shop will have at least one to offer you. Here at Harry's we usually have at least a half-dozen to choose from.

Recently I was out with some friends and we all decided on splitting a bottle of Grüner to drink as an apéritif while we looked over the menu. Each one of us agreed that it was a great wine and a perfect starter for a warm summer evening. The wines are refreshing and interesting. Across the board, Grüners exhibit great balance of fruit and minerality.

The first thing people notice when buying a Grüner is that many come in a 1 liter bottle (750ml is the common wine bottle size) and instead of a cork, many are sealed with a "pop top" (more commonly seen on beer bottles). These features help people in identifying these wines. We often hear someone come in and say, "I was over friends house this weekend and they had a great white wine that had a beer cap on it". This makes our job very easy, we simply march them over to they Austria section and show them the selection.

Two Grüners I have had recently are:
2009 Weingut Groiss, 1 liter, 12% alc, $9.99
2010 Weingut Berger, 1 liter, 12.5% alc, $14.99

Both are excellent wines. The Berger has a little more of a "citrus thing" going on, albeit still tempered by a nice firm mineral backbone. Anyone who is a Sauvignon Blanc fan should give this one a try. The Groiss is definitely a less fruity choice, more like an Alsatian Pinot Gris. I really enjoyed both of them and look forward to having each one again before summers end.

I forgot to mention, besides being great refreshing wines that are meant to be consumed within a few years, Grüner's also come in very high quality and age-worthy styles. These wines can age many years like great white burgundies. Grüner's of this caliber will be found in more traditional bottle shapes with cork closures for better aging.

Come in and check out our selection and give a bottle a try!

- Greg