2019 Emmerich Knoll Grüner Veltliner Federspiel
Emmerich Knoll
October, 2020
Gary Walsh
The Wine Front
94 points
Excellent weight and texture, a fine powdery white peppery feel here, and richness of tangerine, red apple skin and something like lemon barley in the mix, and fennel perfume, but one of those wines where the flavours found will vary greatly from person to person. Never mind all that though, the main thing is that it’s just so good to drink. Maybe some parsnip or turnip, too, and a light vaguely green character, though never at expense of ripeness. Finish is long and fleshy. Terrific.
About Emmerich Knoll
"This winery has produced so many cult wines over the last decades that it would not be a problem to fill an entire book with their tasting notes." So goes the Falstaff Ultimate Wine Guide's entry on Knoll, pronounced with a K. The winery uses exclusively old oak foudres and implements a winemaking philosophy that places varietal site expression at the forefront. Emmerich Knoll senior is a thoughtful, quiet man; the opposite of Emmerich junior, cosmopolitan and modern in his approach. The Knolls have holdings in all the best sites, as exemplified by their success in the now infamous UK tasting where an aged Knoll Grüner beat a field of Grand Cru white Burgundies. The unmistakable labels bearing the image of Saint Urban, the patron saint of winegrowing, are a reminder that tradition is the watchword here. But what isn’t so obvious is that Emmerich Knoll’s wines are sheer joy to drink — now or far into the future.