Gruner Veltliner Smaradg Urgestein Terrassen
⏳ Drinking Window
2022 - 2032
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Wiener Schnitzel, roasted pork belly, spicy Thai green curry
✨ Technical Specifications
Hailing from the dramatic, hand-carved stone terraces of the Wachau, this Smaragd-tier Grüner Veltliner is a monument to extreme viticulture. The name 'Urgestein' pays homage to the ancient primary rock soils—composed of weathered gneiss, schist, and granite—that define these steep slopes. The classification 'Smaragd' itself is steeped in local lore, named after the emerald-green lizards that dart among the sun-warmed stone walls of the vineyards. F.X. Pichler crafts this cuvée as an assembly of fruit from various terraced sites, capturing a complete portrait of the region's unique microclimate. The wine is fermented and aged in large, neutral Austrian oak casks, allowing the natural tension between rich, ripe stone fruit and a fierce, crystalline minerality to express itself without the influence of new wood. It stands as a testament to the Pichler family's uncompromising standards and the historic legacy of Wachau winemaking.
🍾 About the Producer
Founded in 1898 in the village of Oberloiben in Austria's prestigious Wachau region, Weingut F.X. Pichler is globally celebrated as a benchmark producer of world-class white wines. Elevated to international renown by Franz Xaver (F.X.) Pichler and guided today by Lucas Pichler, the estate adheres to a meticulous viticultural philosophy centered on terroir precision, minimal cellar intervention, and the expression of ancient, primary rock terraces. Sourced from legendary steep vineyard sites such as Kellerberg, Loibenberg, and Steinertal, their dry white wines showcase extraordinary concentration, minerality, and tension. The winery is particularly famed for its powerful, age-worthy Grüner Veltliner and Riesling bottlings, highlighted by monumental flagship cuvées like 'Unendlich'.
🍇 Grape Varieties
Grüner Veltliner
🍷 Alcohol By Volume (ABV)
13.5-14%