2012 Emmerich Knoll Riesling Vinothekfüllung Smaragd

Emmerich Knoll

Austria / Wachau / Emmerich Knoll

Wine name/ Variety: Riesling Vinothekfüllung
Viticulturist: Knoll family
Location: Wachau/ Unter-Loiben
Elevation/ Altitude: 260 – 350 m
Exposition: Different terraced vineyards with southern exposure
Soil type: Gneiss-based primary rock with Löss components
Methods of training: modified Moser Training System
Density of planting: 5,000 – 6,500 per hectare / 1.40 – 1.80m row spacing
Harvesting: by hand; selective harvest; rarely green harvest
VINIFICATION
No destemming, skin contact, no carbonic maceration, pneumatic press. Vinified with cultured and natural yeast
Fermentation vessel: cask and stainless steel tank from 500 to 5,000 litres depending on batch quantity
Fermentation length & temperature: 5- 15 days, 23 - 26 degrees

Kim Marcus

Wine Spectator

93 points

An ethereal Riesling, showing a vibrant minerality to the open-textured flavors of baked apple and pear, accented by notes of dried pineapple and mango. Quite honeyed midpalate, with a finish that echoes lemon curd, custard and spice. Rich and compelling. Drink now through 2022.

David Schildknecht

Wine Advocate

91 points

There is an aura of sweetness – in aroma as well as on the palate – to the Knoll 2012 Riesling Smaragd Vinothekfullung that sets it apart from other Rieslings in this collection. Ripe peach and kumquat incorporate the piquancy of their pit and rind, then join brown spices on a glossy, oily, slippery-rich palate before finishing with bittersweet persistence augmented and tempered by saliva-liberating, prolonging salinity. “The basis for this,” explains Knoll Sr., “is a parcel high-up in the Loibenberg which we usually pick for Federspiel or even Steinfeder. But while other Riesling parcels didn’t gain much after a certain point, this one ended up with the highest must weight of all. Mind you, it was picked rather late and with a bit of botrytis.” I suspect – its designation as “vinotec bottling” notwithstanding – that this will be best enjoyed by 2018.

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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.

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