Ebner-Ebenauer
Gruner Veltliner Ried Sauberg Reserve – 2021
Region: Austria - Weinviertel
Ebner-Ebenauer
Deep in a four hundred year old cellar, a quiet, studious man weighs careful decisions to create exquisite wines from each of the special parcels in the Weinviertel. He asks his accomplished, exuberant wife to join him in crafting the perfect blends that reflect their passionate partnership.
Once upon a time…this is how fairy tales usually begin. But sometimes real life is a fairy tale, and that is the case for Marion and Manfred Ebner-Ebenauer. While the Ebner-Ebenauer label was born in 2007, when the two winemakers decided to share their lives, the history of winemaking in Manfred’s family stretches back fourteen generations. Today Ebner-Ebenauer is a mixture of old and new. The 400 year old cellar and modern style of the careful winery renovation. Traditional winemaking, gravity fed, gentle pressing. Using new methods when appropriate. “Respect the traditions but change if not useful.”
The Wine
Vineyard Profile
Ried Sauberg is a wonderful high plateau, behind Ried Bursting, where the pigs once made their home near village of Poysdorf.
- Soil: Gravel soils meet loam from neighboring Ried Bursting
- Vines Planted: early 1960s – over 55 years old
- Warm soils and meager yields
Harvest Notes
- Hand harvested at high Spätlese level of ripeness in October
- Berries hand sorted in vineyard into 20 kg bins
- 24 hour skin contact, then brief settling
- Only indigenous yeasts ferment in used 500-liter oak casks and stainless steel tanks
- Bottled in May
Winemaker's Notes
The wine marries complexity from the loamy soil with structure and mineral touches from gravel. Juicy yet firm with a delicate overlay of spice and layers of flavor. A nearly salty presence lingers on the finish.
Wine Summary
100% Gruner Veltliner; alcohol: 13%; single Sauberg vineyard on high plateau; soils gravel and loam; vineyard planted early 1960s; hand harvested in October at high Spätlese ripeness; 24 hour skin contact; brief settling; only indigenous yeasts ferment in combination of used 500L oak casks and stainless steel tanks; bottled in May.
Technical Information
- 100% Gruner Veltliner
- Alcohol: 13%
- Total Acidity: 5.8 g/l
- Residual Sugar: 2.4 g/l
Reviews
91 Points
From 50-year-old-vines on loam covered by calcareous loess and aged in 500-liter oak barrels and small stainless steel tanks until late May or early June, the 2021 Ried Sauberg Grüner Veltliner opens with a clear and refined, finely yeasty bouquet of ripe fruit. Medium to full-bodied, round and textured on the palate, this is a juicy, refined, elegant and well-balanced Veltliner with a stimulating, saline and finely phenolic finish with mouth-filling texture. 12.8% alcohol. Screw cap. 2022 – 2036
© Wine Advocate, December, 2022
17 Points
50-year-old vines on clay/loess/limestone soil. 50% fermented in French oak. 12 hours on the skins in the press.
Complex, mineral aroma of peppery pear. Really intense Grüner Veltliner character but also with a firm, dry texture that makes it a powerful but elegant and super-fresh wine. 2023 – 2028
JancisRobinson.com, April, 2023
General Info
| Country | Austria |
| Region | Niederösterreich |
| Appellation(s) | Weinviertel |
| Proprietors | Marion & Manfred Ebner-Ebenauer |
| Founded | 2007 |
| Winemaker | Manfred Ebner-Ebenauer |
| Annual Production | |
| Farming (Sustainable, organic, biodynamic) | Organic/biodynamic |