Grüner Veltliner Käferberg, an Award-Winning Erste Lage
The 2018 Grüner Veltliner Käferberg from Fred Loimer is a dry organic white wine from the Erste Lage Käferberg in the Kamptal region. Rich in substance, mineral, and mature – a top-class single-vineyard wine, awarded 95 points by Falstaff.
Grüner Veltliner Käferberg 2018 is the prize-winning single-vineyard wine from the Fred Loimer winery in Langenlois. A Grüner Veltliner from the Erste Lage Käferberg, fermented in large wooden barrels and aged for a long time on the lees. Substance, elegance, and great staying power – a wine for special occasions and patient connoisseurs.
Yellow apple, dried banana, a hint of pepper
On the nose, the Grüner Veltliner smells of yellow apples and dried banana, accompanied by notes of herbs, orange zest, and a touch of pepper. A complex bouquet that reveals more and more as it breathes.
On the palate, it becomes substantial and elegant, with fine extract sweetness, mineral grip, and a long, salty finish. With 13% vol, it has strength but remains smooth due to its mild acidity of 4.8 g/l. Fine texture, light-footed despite its depth – truly excellent.
Pairs with Wiener Schnitzel and crispy fried chicken
Its creaminess and salty minerality make the Käferberg a wine for heartier dishes.
For Fred Loimer, it clearly pairs with anything fried in fat – the classic Wiener Schnitzel or crispy fried chicken. It stands up just as well alongside roasted veal, light poultry, or aged hard cheese. Serve at 11 to 12 degrees in a large glass to allow the aromas to unfold. It ranks among the very best dry white wines.
55-year-old vines on gneiss and marine sediment
The Ried Käferberg is a warm, sheltered Erste Lage not far from Langenlois, facing south at an altitude of 310 to 345 meters. The soils are complex: Gföhl gneiss and mica schist, overlaid with sand and clay marl – an ancient marine sediment that gives the wine its salinity.
The vines, up to 55 years old, are Guyot-trained and cultivated biodynamically, with a low yield of 40 hectoliters per hectare. After 24 hours of maceration and whole-bunch pressing, the must undergoes spontaneous fermentation in used 1,250 and 2,500-liter oak barrels, slowly and coolly at a maximum of 24 degrees.
It ages for eleven months on the full lees in oak barrels, and for another nine months on the fine lees in steel tanks, before being bottled in July 2019. This results in a wine with structure and aging potential, without an intrusive oak note.
95 Falstaff points and a first-place finish
The 2018 Käferberg has been celebrated by critics across the board: 95 points from Falstaff, 18 out of 20 from Gault&Millau, and 93 to 94 points from the Wine Advocate.
At the Kamptal Wine Night, it took first place in the Falstaff DAC Reserve Cup. Fred Loimer manages the vineyards biodynamically; within the respekt-BIODYN association, they take a particularly rigorous approach in the vineyard – and you can taste why in the glass. Truly impressive. Those who wish to keep tasting can find other wines from the Fred Loimer winery, such as the younger Käferberg 2017.
Beautiful now, perhaps even better in five years
Give it time and air, preferably in a carafe – a wine of this class does not show its true self in the first sip. Serve at 11 to 12 degrees, not too cold. At 13% vol, it has stature but can still be stored for years. A delight now, and perhaps even better in five years.
Grüner Veltliner Käferberg – a wine and its values
- Origin: Wine from Austria
- Region: Kamptal DAC
- Site / Ried: Käferberg, Erste Lage
- Grape variety: Grüner Veltliner
- 13.0% vol. Alcohol
- 4.8 g/l Acidity
- 2.0 g/l Residual sugar
- 97 mg/l Total SO2
- vegan
Organic certification number AT-BIO-402 – Austrian Agriculture