2013 Gruner Veltliner Achleiten Smaragd (Collection Case)
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Tasting notes
A terrific nose mingles greenhouse-like floral and leafy scents with mouthwateringly caramelized suggestions of blond tobacco, roasted rutabaga and parsnip, all of which then inform a full and oil-slicked but fundamentally firm palate further laced with juicy apple and honeydew melon. Pungent green herbs, white pepper, smoky black tea and crushed stone as well as alkaline mineral notes add intrigue and stimulation on a seriously sustained finish that, a year after bottling, displays both luscious juiciness and shimmering interactivity that I had by no means initially anticipated.
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Stephan Reinhardt, Wine Advocate
David Schildknecht, Vinous
More reviews and scores
The 2013 Grüner Veltliner Smaragd Achleiten opens very clear and elegant on the nose, offering intense and ultra-ripe but also fresh-fruit aromas with spicy undertones. Full-bodied, rich and almost oily textured, this is a very powerful and almost narcotic Smaragd clearly affected by botrytis. Its fruit is really intense and the acidity incisive, but in the end I find this Achleiten Gruner somewhat saturating.