Today we present a three-vintage vertical of Grüner Veltliners from a reclusive farmer near the Czech border in Austria.
This is only the second time we've ever seen a small allocation of these wines; we believe it's only the second time any wine has been released from this curious cellar.
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These are Grüner Veltliners that very literally transcend what one might normally think of as Grüner Veltliner. (For example, the 2014 Grüner on offer, bone dry, clocks in at only 11% alcohol).
There are few precedents for today's wines; not many wines spend this much time in barrel. The only comparison must be with Nikolaihof's "Vinothek" releases; yet for the price of one bottle of Nikolaihof today you could buy six bottles of Sonntag Geschlossen.
At $189.95 in six-packs, this is an incredible deal.
What we've written in the past about the "Vinotheks" holds true here. The bulk and the weight of most Grüner is gone. Instead, there is a silken elegance, with a mix of both exoticism and rigor. The wines weave together pears and citrus with a caramelized and textural quality not unlike suave Chenin.
This line about a previous "Vinothek" holds especially true: "The wine seems to ricochet through the natural world, bouncing from floral to earth to stone fruits to minerality in a dynamic interplay."
These wines originate not in the famous Wachau (as with Nikolaihof), but in the extreme northern territory of Austria's Weinviertel, only kilometers away from the Czech border. This explains some of the value.
Markus Sonntag is a serious farmer; like Nikolaihof, he practices biodynamic farming. He works only two hectares in this forgotten corner of Austria and it is the farming he is most passionate about, not the process of bottling and selling wine.
So, for the better part of a decade, Markus has focused on the farming and regularly topping up the barrels in the cellar so the influence of oxygen is kept at bay. Actually selling the wine was beyond an afterthought; and this explains more of the value.
Thus the play on words of the bottling: "Sonntag Geschlossen" translates roughly to "closed on Sunday." Though in this case, the Sonntag cellars have been closed for years. It was, in fact, only after many years that Markus allowed a friend of his to bottle the wines, and to take them from the cellar and sell them.
This is only the second release we've ever seen from this cellar. We have no idea when there will be another. These are magical wines not to be missed.
To order, email offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.
Joe Salamone
Wine Buyer
Crush Wine & Spirits
Special 6-pack pricing (2 of each wine), for a limited time. Use Code: Sonntag
