Wine Monday: Delicious Decrepitude in Krems

Wine Monday: Delicious Decrepitude in Krems David Rosengarten

IMG_6382

One of the greatest moments in my three-week-long wine-buying trip to Europe was my tasting at Winzer Krems, the superlative Austrian co-op in the charming wine town of Krems.

Now, say “Austria” to a wine geek, and the first thought is usually the Wachau (pronounced VAH-cow)–the beautiful region on the Danube that has gotten the majority of American wine attention. I love some Wachau wines…but I often find them in OTT territory…”over the top” with alcohol, richness.

I’m usually more comfortable, in Austria, with the well-balanced wines of the Kamptal, and the Kremstal.

And that is why I found myself, along with my CEO Terry Seal, in the big co-op tasting room at Krems…where a superb selection of wines from the cellar had been laid out for us. But I mean…FROM THE CELLAR!!!

IMG_6375

IMG_6376

We were lucky enough to taste Grüner Veltliners, Rieslings and Gewurztraminers back to the 1970s…amazing wines, most of them at the peak of health, straw-yellow (even with glints of green), with extraordinary elegance and complexity. A number of them, I’m happy to say, will be available to my readers soon, on this web site.

What keeps them so healthy? The cold cellar, of course…but some would add that the blanket of mold over so many bottles down there protects those bottles from everything!

Here’s a glimpse of the cellar at Winzer Krems on Jan. 23, 2014:

IMG_6378

IMG_6381

IMG_6385

IMG_6386

IMG_6388

IMG_6389

Related Posts