 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Zöbinger Heiligenstein at its best The Riesling Reserve 2002 has arrived! From a selection of the best Riesling berries we could vinify an extraordinary wine last year, which is now ready for sale. The berries for the „Riesling Reserve 2002“ from the Zöbinger Heiligenstein were selectively picked by hand not until November 2002 - the amazing thing about it: The berries reached their high level of ripeness almost botrytis-free and therefore this Riesling convinces by its gorgeously clear Riesling character, its complex mineral undertones and the firm texture. Heiligenstein in four varieties The „Reserve“ was vinified additionally to the already well-established „Riesling Heiligenstein“ (Kabinett) and „Alte Reben“ (a Riesling harvested rather late, made from grapes selected from especially old vines). So now we are able to present the wines from our prime vineyard site Heiligenstein comprehensively. Each wine has in fact its own character, yet all of them are strongly influenced by the site-specific minerals and therefore clearly identifable as „members of a family“. The picture of the Heiligenstein-Series is completed by a delicacy: On December 10, 2003 at 12° degrees below zero at 6 o’clock in the morning 490 kg Riesling grapes were harvested from the highest terraces. The result was 65 litres of ice wine. An extraordinary hill The Zöbinger Heiligenstein is not without good reasons known as one of the very best Riesling sites in Austria. Its reddish, eroded desert sandstone is about 270 million years old and encloses conglomerates made from volcanic material. Because of the intensive sunshine on the south slope and the south-wards cauldron location the climate gets „hellishly hot“ during daytime, which originally gave the hill the name „Höllenstein“ („Hell-Stone“). In the course of time due to changes in dialect pronunciation the hill received its still common name „Heiligenstein“. The vineyards are part of a wildlife-sanctuary with areas of dry grassland, which are strictly protected, as they are home to flora and fauna usually just found in Mediterranean regions. picture: Heiligenstein [back] |