How an Austrian stirs up the white wine market.
What does “GV” mean in the world of wine? According to the Oxford Wine Lexicon, this is the international abbreviation for Austria’s national grape variety “Grüner Veltliner”. It has competed with the German Riesling for ages. The national vine of the Alpine republic is now even grown on New Zealand (Central Ortago).
In the Anglo-Saxon world one has its problems with the pronunciation of “Grüner Veltliner”. Therefore “GV”. One man rocks the international GM scene: Lenz Moser is Austria’s “Mr. GV “. Even a vine training system for GV is named after him.
In order to bring the alpine white wines in the USA and Asia to the wine lovers, he invented pretty stupid names for his pretty great Grüner Veltliner. For example, one is called “Charming”. Another was called “Silver Bullet”. Van Helsing is said to have always drunk this stuff before the vampire hunt. Unfortunately, production has stopped. So far it has been my favorite GV.
Now the old rocker Lenz Moser dedicates himself to the biker scene. His latest Grüner Veltliner is called “New Chapter” and is recommended for start-up parties of Hells Angels chapters. For example at Ernst-August von Hannover, who has already received rockers at the castle.
Joking aside: Here too, of course, the name is used for international distribution. Lenz Moser: “I want to carry the grape variety beyond the German-speaking world.” We even encounter Grüner Veltliner in Martin Walker’s latest Perigord thriller (“French Roulette”)!
Moser makes the wine together with the Austrian talented winemaker Markus Huber near Krems. With the 2020 New Chapter, Moser wants to play in the top league of international white wines (27.99 euros per bottle at www.belvini.de). His benchmarks, which he serves for comparison, are Bründlmayer Ried Käferberg, Château Carbonnieux blanc or an important Pouilly Fumé as well as the Turmberg by Robert Weil. A pretty aristocratic society. New Chapter fits in there. The wine is an assemblage of different locations. Limestone soils dominate. 95 percent are built in stainless steel, 5 percent in wood. Huber makes organic wines. In the near future he even wants to switch to biodynamic.
First of all, the New Chapter belongs cold in a carafe for 20 minutes. Then I would pour it into the modern burgundy glass. It is a dense, noble white wine that is reminiscent of France. New Chapter is fruit-reduced in Burgundy, has a subtle acidic structure and offers aromas of nuts, tangerines, meadow herbs and salt. It needs some air to breathe and, in contrast to earlier Grüner Veltliners from different Austrian wineries, has a good timeline. I mean: it continues to develop in the basement. It can, but does not have to be drunk fresh.
Sure, this Grüner Veltliner calls for a Viennese veal schnitzel to accompany you. But this time I prepared an Apulian herb omelette with spinach and parmesan. And Martin Walker’s boiling village bull “Bruno” would probably come up with completely different recipes for this GV. Will Lenz Moser GV soon also be planting on his huge Chinese winery?