Grape variety
Grüner Veltliner
Grüner Veltliner, Austria’s signature grape: its parentage, Weinviertel and Wachau, the peppery style from light to full, and what to eat with it.
- Colour
- White
- Parentage
- A natural cross of Traminer and the Sankt Georgener Rebe (DNA analysis, 2007)
- Main regions
- Austria: about 14,000 hectares, nearly a third of the vineyards, above all Weinviertel, Wachau, Kamptal, Kremstal; also Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary
- Typical aromas
- Green apple, citrus, white pepper, herbs
- Tiers
- Wachau: Steinfeder, Federspiel, Smaragd; Weinviertel DAC: Klassik and Reserve
- Classic pairing
- Wiener Schnitzel, roast poultry, vegetables, Asian cooking
Grüner Veltliner is Austria’s signature grape: with about 14,000 hectares, nearly a third of the vineyard area, no other variety is planted as widely. The wine is dry, spicy and lively, with green apple, citrus and the white pepper note for which the grape is known. It became the country’s most planted variety only after the Second World War, and its present name only established itself in the 20th century; before that the name Weissgipfler, “white tip”, was also widely used.
Its origin long remained a puzzle. DNA analysis eventually showed that Grüner Veltliner is a natural cross of Traminer and an unremarkable vine found at St. Georgen am Leithagebirge in Burgenland: a single, very old vine, found in 2000, that was very nearly pulled out. It is called the Sankt Georgener Rebe after where it was found. Silvaner also has Traminer as a parent, so the two varieties are half-siblings.
The heartland is Lower Austria. In the Weinviertel, north of Vienna, it is the main variety; the region was the first in Austria to introduce a DAC, and it covers Grüner Veltliner alone: a fruity, spicy, peppery wine without oak or noble rot, with a fuller Reserve alongside. Kamptal and Kremstal also have a DAC, for Grüner Veltliner and Riesling. In the Wachau the growers’ association Vinea Wachau grades its dry whites as Steinfeder (up to 11.5 per cent alcohol), Federspiel (no more than 12.5 per cent) and Smaragd (at least 12.5 per cent). The Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary, where it is called Veltlínské zelené and Zöld veltelini, also have sizeable plantings.
Depending on site and ripeness it can be light and zippy or full and powerful: on the loess soils of the Weinviertel it turns juicy and spicy, on the primary-rock terraces of the Wachau taut and mineral; the best wines take on some of the character of a white Burgundy with age. Thanks to its freshness and light spice it is a versatile partner at the table: with Wiener Schnitzel, roast poultry, vegetables and herb-led dishes, but also with Asian cooking. Simple wines are drunk young and cool, while the great ones from the Wachau and Kamptal can wait a few years. To get to know the grape, start with a Weinviertel DAC Klassik, which costs little and shows how the wine is meant to be: fresh, spicy, straightforward.