Austria
2018 Gold 7 Silver 7 Bronze 6 Commended 7
2017 Gold 3 Silver 6 Bronze 3 Commended 7
Austria exploded this year. This was the country’s most medals ever – and a huge increase in places on the Gold List to boot. An increased number of entries helped. We’ve always said that if the wines come in, somms love ’em.
What was impressive here, however, wasn’t so much the sheer number of medals on display, but the variety, with medals for a wide range of wine styles.
Riesling and Grüner Veltliner we’d probably expect to do well, but the often-unheralded (red) Zweigelt put in a strong showing too, and there was warmth for much less typically Austrian styles as well, such as Merlot, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.
With medals at ‘cheap’, ‘mid-price’ and ‘expensive’, this was a complete performance.
FROM THE TASTING TEAMS
‘They were very impressive in terms of pricing. Even the cheaper examples were good for what they were trying to do.’ Lionel Periner, team leader
‘Customers don’t ask for Grüner, it’s not that well known. But customers should realise there’s more out there than just the famous grapes.’ Rita Kardos, Gauthier Soho
‘The ones that we medalled would be easy to sell. They might need a bit of a push, but people like these wines and they do over-deliver.’ Richard Cavagin-Carey, The Harwood Arms
‘I have five or six Grüners on the list; people are looking for alternatives to Riesling.’ Adam Michocki, Glasshouse
‘You could put a glass of Grüner in front of anybody and they wouldn’t be upset. All quite middle of the road.’ Jade Koch, team leader
‘The Grüners were a very good line-up, and very food-friendly: shellfish, no sauces, just something clean.’ Mattia Mazzi, Lutyens Bar & Restaurants