2022 Rudi Pichler Gruner Veltliner Terrassen Smaragd Wachau 750 ml

Grüner Veltliners from Austria’s Wachau region are some of the great wines of the world—and though they aren’t cheap, they’re bargains: capable of standing toe-to-toe with bottlings from Burgundy or Alsace that cost three times as much. In that category, few come anywhere close to Rudi Pichler’s bottled gold.

The 2022 Terrassen Grüner Veltliner Smaragd is a monumental bottling, with layered complexity that balances vibrant citrus and orchard fruit with plenty of minerality and spice. Smaragd is the most prestigious designation accorded to Grüner in the Wachau, reserved only for wines with exceptional power and concentration, and they have a long track record of breathtaking development with age.

Rudi Pichler is considered one of Austria’s elite winemakers. He works in the Wachau, the most prestigious region in the country—one of the most breathtaking places in the wine world, with steep, terraced vineyards overlooking the majestic Danube river. 

He has some of the best holdings in the Wachau—there are some real perks to being in the region since 1731—and puts them to immaculate use. This hails from top sites in the towns of Wösendorf and Joching, and the mix of soils and exposition helps blend complexity and intrigue into the glass. Plus, the steep slopes make for excellent drainage help with exposition through the day.

Yields are low, even by the standards of the Wachau. To improve concentration and power, Pichler utilizes a short maceration of the grapes before pressing to enhance palate presence and richness. That’s followed by fermentation and aging in stainless steel, preserving the brightness of the wine, then a leisurely seven months on the lees to build texture and let the wine harmonize before bottling.