2016 F.X. Pichler Riesling Burgstall Federspiel

F.X. Pichler

Austria / Wachau / F.X. Pichler

The single vineyard Burgstall stretches on a high plateau featuring pure gneiss and granite soils with blown-in sands on top. The name comes from a small fortification built in the Middle Ages to defend the farm animals against raiders. It was mentioned in the chronicles as early as 1248. This sun-pampered and breezy vineyard is most suitable for lacy, fruit-driven and purist Rieslings in the Federspiel range.
This was the first vineyard picked in 2017 in order for Lucas Pichler to provide a Federspiel wine from the vintage. It is gorgeously aromatic with a spectrum of blossoms and citrus suggestions. Crunchy, almost tart on entry before filling out to give a pure, tense palate with orchard and citrus fruit joined by exotic notes. - Ed Merrison, CellarHand

April, 2019

Mike Bennie

The Wine Front

93 points

Strong scents of lemon and lemon curd, green herb, anise. The palate has a light spritz in the nicest possible way, zingy as acidity lifting more of the lemon juice and lemon curd richness, with flavours long and suggestive through the wine. A touch of wax/honeycomb to finish lends complexity. Interesting expression.

January, 2017

Anne Krebiehl MW

Wine Enthusiast

93 points

On the surface there is brisk, spicy grapefruit zest, while underneath the nose hints at generously ripe apricot and Mirabelle plum. The palate plays off juicy stone fruit and zesty citrus on a sleek, slender, concentrated body. The freshness is brisk and taut, while the fruit is charming and soft. With a slender, sleek and dry mouthfeel, this is just what you want from Riesling.

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About F.X. Pichler

"Everything here seems stylish, cultured and intelligently managed," wrote Sophie Otton of her recent visit to FX Pichler - which is, she notes, "widely regarded as Austria's finest estate". "Most of the wines here are Smaragd, which indicates the quality of their vineyard sites," Sophie observes. "Looking down the hillside to the Danube, it's obvious, the aspect is perfect. The wines are striking, like cut crystal, with strong clear lines; succulent, satiny and honeyed." The new winery, completed in 2010, is a stunning piece of design, with an imposing bank of stainless steel vats, side by side with the old oak foudres that are used for aging but not fermentation. The Pichlers use long maceration times – 20 hours for the Smaragds - and bottle direct from cask after eight months or so aging on lees. These exceptional wines have every inch of the finesse of Prager, but communicated through a slightly more open, loose- knit framework.

About

In 1971, Lucas Pichler’s father Franz-Xaver started running the estate, and would go on 41 years later to win a lifetime achievement award for his efforts from German magazine Der Feinschmecker. 1999 was the year that Lucas took over winemaking duties from his father, who continues to tend the vines. FX Pichler’s vineyards comprise some 18 hectares, of which around 47% are planted to Riesling (the rest is almost entirely Grüner Veltliner). A fraction less than half the area under vine sprawls across steeply rising terraces. This winemaking process presupposes multi-pass manual picking of premium-quality, highly ripe grapes followed by careful processing and traditional maturation in large oak casks. Lucas aims for naturalness and distinctiveness by forgoing chaptalisation and fining.