My Favorite 2009 FX Pichler Riesling
2009 FX Pichler Riesling Steinertal Smaragd
I have always loved Pichler's Steinertal (for that matter, I've always loved Alzinger's Steinertal). I love the delicacy, the fine-ness, the minerality that is somehow both attenuated and incredibly present.
And I've always loved the price.
F.X. Pichler's Riesling Steinertal Smaragd is a wine that gives the famed Kellerberg (arguably the greatest vineyard in Austria, the finest Riesling) a run for it's money.
Today it does so at about $25 below the release-price of the Kellerberg.
If the Kellerberg is statuesque, commanding, muscular and glossy and in general just flashy (though not at all in a silly way), the Steinertal is much quieter... more meditative. The proportions of Pichler's Riesling Steinertal is always a bit more diminutive, though in a ripe, vibrant vintage like 2009 it is a magical combination.
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This bottle is highly recommended for both the Austro-fanatic as well as fans of crisp, mineral-laden dry white wines.
While Austria's Rieslings (with FX Pichler and Hirtzberger and a few others leading the way) seem to grow more steroidal with each passing vintage, more and more I find myself obsessed with the wines that can walk on their tip-toes, Rieslings that are slim-waisted and vibrant and flaunt what for me Riesling should flaunt - which is CLARITY (let's go ahead and underline, bold, ital and cap that).
For me, Pichler's 2009 Riesling Steinertal is a near-perfect marriage of force and elegance, super-fluid layers of glossy fruit married to polished minerals, to an acidity that seems fashioned from porcelain, though a porcelain vaguely threatening in its dagger-esque sharpness.
Writes Mr. Peter Moser for Tanzer's IWC: "Full-bodied but marvelously delineated, thanks to a brilliant spine of acid and cool wet-slate minerality." That's exactly right - the full review, below, is worth a look.
While 2009 was a very successful vintage in Austria, the success did not come easily. Yields were very, very short and our first tranche of 2009 F.X. Pichler was well below what it had been in past years and disappeared quickly.
This is a sizable parcel - in all honesty I was sort of shocked by the quantity available. Though I'm not promising anything, for those of you who want to consider a 6er for the cellar (with a drinking window up to 2025 not a bad idea) let me know and I'll do the best I can. (That said, all orders subject to confirmation, sorry.)
To order, email us at offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.
It's the holiday weekend so we may be a bit slower than normal getting back to you. Hopefully you'll be too relaxed on a sunny beach somewhere to notice.
(But don't relax too much. We won't give away everything, but I'd pay attention to your email on Monday... at least if you like HUGE SALES.)
Stephen Bitterolf
Wine Director
Crush Wine & Spirits
Special Email Bottle Price: $59.88
Tanzer's IWC: "Ripe, vibrant aromas of peach, apple blossom and wet slate. Full-bodied but marvelously delineated, thank to a brilliant spine of acid and cool wet-slate minerality. This is clearly the most mineral wine in this year's F.X. Pichler series and the finish is downright salty. Needs some time to develop in bottle and should be at its best between 2015 and 2025."
Pre-arrival
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