History
Grüner Veltliner has been believed to date back to
Roman times, with its name being derived from
Veltlin (Valtellina) in
northern Italy, though ampelographers and wine historians have yet to find a link between the grape and the Italian commune. The current name appeared in a document for the first time in 1855; before that time it was known as
Weißgipfler. St. Georgener-Rebe was once known under the synonym
Grüner Muskateller but appears to have no direct relationship to the
Muscat family of grapes. In February 2011, the single surviving vine of St. Georgener-Rebe, thought to be over 500 years old, was vandalized and severely cut in several places by an unknown assailant. The vine survived with the Austrian government designating the vine as a protected natural monument. Ampelographers are currently propagating
cuttings of the vine for vineyard plantings and commercial cultivation.
Relationship to other grapes Through its parent, Savagnin, Grüner Veltliner is a half sibling of
Rotgipfler and is either a grandchild or a half-sibling to
Pinot noir which has a parent-offspring relationship with Savagnin. The nature of this relationship is unclear since
DNA profiling has not yet determined between Pinot and Savagnin which grape is the parent and which grape is the offspring. Despite having the name
Grüner Veltliner, the grape has no known connection to other Veltliner grapes including
Roter Veltliner and
Frühroter Veltliner. The grey-berried vine
Grauer Veltliner (also known as Veltliner Grau) was once thought to be a distinct grape variety but DNA evidence in 1996 showed that it was a
color mutation of Grüner Veltliner. ==Viticulture==
Wine regions
Grüner Veltliner is most closely associated with Austria where it is the most widely planted grape variety in the country, covering almost a third of all Austrian vineyards, with 17,034 hectares (42,092 acres) in cultivation in 2012. The grape is authorized in five
Districtus Austriae Controllatus (DAC) regions—the
Weinviertel where it is the only permitted grape variety;
Leithaberg where it can be made as a
varietal or blended with
Pinot blanc,
Chardonnay and
Neuburger;
Traisental,
Kremstal and
Kamptal where it is planted with Riesling. The grape is also found in the Donauland (now known as the
Wagram region) and in the
Wachau region of
Lower Austria. Along the
Danube river warm air currents come in from the
Pannonian Basin to the east and blow westward, warming the vines. This area tends to produce more
full bodied wines with
peach flavor notes. Other notable Oregon Growers include Chehalem Winery, Raptor Ridge Winery, and Illahe Vineyards. New York State's
Finger Lakes AVA is home to some small plantings of Grüner Veltliner due to the cool climate and proximity to the glacially formed
Finger Lakes which help mitigate excessive cold in the early spring and the winter. Lamoreaux Landing is one of a few notable Finger Lakes wineries that produces Grüner Veltliner. Additional American plantings of Grüner Veltliner are found in
Maryland,
Virginia, in the
Outer Coastal Plain AVA of
New Jersey and in the
Lehigh Valley AVA of
Pennsylvania. American Grüner Veltliners tend to be medium bodied, lightly fruity with high acidity and spice notes. In California, one of the early plantings of Grüner Veltliner was in the
Diamond Mountain District AVA of
Napa Valley. In 2006, the 1/3 acre planting of the grape at
Von Strasser Winery in Diamond Mountain was the only recorded planting of Grüner Veltliner in the state of California. in the Adelaide Hills In
Australia, Grüner Veltliner has seen an increase of interest and plantings which has led wine expert
James Halliday to speculate that the grape may be "the next big thing" in Australian wine. One of the earliest Grüner Veltliner plantings in the country was in the
Adelaide Hills wine region in the state of
South Australia in 2008 by
Hahndorf Hill Winery. The grape planting is part of an extensive effort of Adelaide Hills grower, chaired by
Henschke's viticulturist, Prue Henschke, to make Grüner Veltliner a signature variety for the region. Here the region's large
diurnal temperature variation allow the grape to build
sugar levels during the warm days but maintain a balance of
acidity during the cool nights. The first
varietal bottling of Grüner Veltliner in Australia was released in 2009 by the
Canberra winery
Lark Hill followed by Hahndorf Hill in 2010. ==Styles==
Styles
Grüner Veltliner can be produced in a variety of styles from simple
jug wine meant to be consumed soon after the
vintage to ageworthy wine that can continue to develop in the bottle. According to wine expert Oz Clarke, Grüner Veltliner is usually not very
aromatic in its youth, developing more tertiary aromas with age. Instead the grape often shows
white pepper,
lentil and
celery note with some examples showing citrus notes and more full bodied examples having what Clarke describes as a "honeyed weight" to them. that this is not the case. In recent decades, Ms Robinson has observed that this white pepper characteristic has become less noticeable and nowadays, more often than not, is absent in many classic examples of this variety. According to wine expert
Tom Stevenson, Grüner Veltliner is often lightly fruity with noticeable spice and characteristic white pepper note. Well-made examples from favorable vintages can have a similarity to
Chardonnay produced in Burgundy. And, like Chardonnay, the variety can be made in an overly oaky and "fat" style.
Unoaked examples can exhibit a minerality similar to Riesling. Master of Wine Jancis Robinson notes that Grüner Veltliner is usually produced
dry with spicy, peppery notes. It is often full-bodied and with age can take on aromas and flavors similar to white Burgundies. ==Synonyms==
Synonyms
Over the years Grüner Veltliner, which colloquially is sometimes referred to as GrüVe, has been known under the following synonyms: Bielospicak, Cima Biancam, Dreimänner, Feherhegyü, Feldlinger, Grauer Veltliner (in Austria), Green Veltliner, Grün Muskateller, Grüne Manhardsrebe, Grüner, Grüner Muskateler (in Austria), Grüner Muskateller (in common usage until the 1930s), Grüner Velteliner, Grüner Weissgipfler, Grüner Weltliner, Grünmuskateller, Gruner Veltliner, Manhardsrebe, Manhardtraube, Manhartsrebe, Mauhardsrebe, Mouhardrebe, Mouhardsrebe, Muskatel, Muskatel Zeleny, Nemes Veltelini, Plinia Austriaca, Ranfol bianco, Ranfol Bijeli, Ranfol Weisser, Rdeci Veltinec, Reifler Weiss, Ryvola Bila, Tarant Bily, Valtelin blanc, Valtelina vert, Valteliner, Valteliner blanc, Valteliner vert, Velteliner Grüner, Velteliner vert, Velteliner Weisser, Veltelini Zöld, Veltlin Zeleny, Veltlinac Zeleni, Veltlinec, Veltliner (in Alto Adige), Veltliner blanc, Veltliner grau (in Austria), Veltliner Grun, Veltliner Gruner, Veltliner Grün, Veltliner verde, Veltlini, Veltlinske zelené (in Slovakia), Veltlínské zelené (in Czech Republic), Veltlinski Zelenii, Veltlinsky Vert, Veltlinsky Zeleny, Vetlinac, Vetlinac Zeleni, Weisser Raifler, Weisser Reifler, Weisser Valteliner, Weisser Velteliner, Weisser Veltliner, Weissgipfler (in Austria), Weissgipfler Grüner, Yesil Veltliner, Zeleni Vetlinac (in Slovenia), Zeleny Muskatel, Zleni Veltinac, Zöld Muskotally, Zöld Muskotalynak, Zöld Veltelini (in Hungary), Zöld Velteliny, Zöldveltelini and Zold Veltelini. ==References==