A wine from Slovakia. I’m pretty sure I’ve never had one before. And it’s got Grüner Veltliner in it! So when Ben from King Street Cellar suggested I give it a go, who was I to argue?
In the glass
A medium to deep gold, rather than yellow. It’s an intriguingly dark wine. Enticing, I’d even call it. It does weird things in the glass. Most wines – that I can think of anyway – tend to fade toward the rim when you tilt the glass. This one seems to do the opposite, and gets darker around the edges. Presumably something about the glass (although I tried two different ones) and the light. If I was more intrigued by this, I’d go and check several other white wines.
The nose
There’s something. Not citrus. Not sure I’d even go with stone fruits. Perhaps dried apricots, or orange peel. Maybe apricot pit? Not that I can recall the last time I smelled an apricot pit on its own. But it sounds like a decent description, so let’s go with that.
The palate
Medium body, with a bit of zing. Nice! Those are my initial notes from the tasting. There’s more citrus on the palate, and in particular the finish than on the nose, but I’d go with lime rather than lemon. Maybe some melon on the palate as well. (That’s cantaloupe for you Americans.)
For me, the finish is more about a lingering mouthfeel, than a taste per se. The lime’s there, but hiding in a corner. It’s a melon-like mouthfeel. And I’ve only just realised that melon is an anagram of lemon.
Rating
An easy Yummy-plus on this one, with Pretty on the visuals. A very enjoyable wine. I didn’t do any of the tasting with food, but I think it would stand up to a bit of substance. I may have to test it against spaetzle, or mac & cheese, two of my favourite comfort foods. Or fish, or cheese toasties would work, I think.
Sustainability
Biodynamic, although not clear if certified. Spontaneous fermentation. Low intervention. Their website notes that some wines are unfiltered and have minimal SO2 added at bottling, but doesn’t specify if this is the case for this wine.
The technical info
13.0% ABV; Grüner Veltliner, Welschriesling, Riesling; £22.49 from King Street Cellar.