1999 Riesling Heiligenstein Alte Reben

Willi Brundlmayer and his wines speak eloquently for the Kamptal, and he is consciously pushing the qualitative envelope with each new vintage and project. Brundlmayer dry '99s were clearer and more expressive than his '98s, though still at times noticeably high in alcohol. I asked whether his more expensive bottlings of gruner veltliner, where wood and long lees contact play a role, haven't sacrificed some varietal typicity. "Certainly I'm willing to sacrifice some primary fruit," he replied. "But the character of gruner veltliner is there, just in altered form. Years ago, the image of gruner veltliner was a [light] wine like my Vogelsang. Nowadays, one can risk something more. It was not long ago that nobody left veltliner vineyards standing more than 20, or, at most, 30 years because low yields were frowned on. Its thick skins used to mean gruner turned bitter if you tried to extract too much flavor. Today, with small picking boxes, pneumatic presses and gentle handling, we can avoid that dilemma."x000D x000D Brundlmayer's '98 botrytis wines were vinified in new barriques "less risky than tanks, where the yeasts can suffocate or off flavors develop," he explained. A doughy, thick '98 Gruner Veltliner Beerenauslese* ($49 for 375 ml.) combined peach jam and marmalade, with exotic spice, mint and floral notes. A Gruner Veltliner TBA** ($59 for 375 ml.) combined honey, glazed orange and vanilla icing with deeply caramelized peach and rich nut oils. The '98 Riesling BA's ($52 for 375 ml.) honey and lemon segued nicely into the vanilla and spice of oak. The corresponding TBA* ($62 for 375 ml.; largely Heiligenstein) was thicker yet brighter, with notes of lanolin, wood smoke and caramelized peach.