2008 Franz Hirtzberger Riesling Setzberg Smaragd

Franz Hirtzberger

Austria / Wachau / Franz Hirtzberger

Setzberg is situated 300m above sea level and therefore the highest in altitude of the Hirtzberger vineyards. The soil type is pure gneiss. Its location at the entrance to the Spitzer trench means that the vineyard's mesoclimate is influence by the chilly north winds that blow through it.
Gorgeous, perfumed nose. Musk, spice seeds, talcy minerals. The palate is clean and driven with some lovely fruit sweet/floral flavours and textures. Some authoritative acid takes over somewhere in the middle palate, and strings the wine out in a lean, clean, mineral and peppery finish. Racy. Really Good.

Jancis Robinson

17.5/20

Tangy ripe grapefruit aromas. Very rich and round. Big and dense and intense. Creamy and a bit hot on the end.

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About Franz Hirtzberger

The Hirtzberger family purchased its first vineyards in the village of Spitz in the late 1800s. The winery is situated at the western end of the Wachau - the part that's coolest and closest to the mountains. The terraced Singerriedel vineyard has brought the family near legendary status for its Riesling, while the Honivogl has done the same with Grüner Veltliner. Such sites, allied to an approach that’s simple in the extreme, lend the wines an often astonishing transparency and complexity.

About

"In every walk of life the best results are obtained as a result of care," says Franz Hirtzberger, adding, "this is especially true when it comes to the vine." He and his son, also Franz, now share responsibilities in the vineyard and the cellar in order to give the vine and its fruit all the time and attention possible in their quest for great wine. Wines are fermented in stainless steel and then aged in old oak barrels and sit stylistically somewhat apart from the rest. Spicy, exotic and perfectly poised, they nevertheless combine the opulence of FX Pichler with Prager’s racy purity.