Gelber Muskateller Kitzeck-Sausal – from Weingut Wohlmuth

The Wohlmuth Gelber Muskateller Kitzeck-Sausal 2021 is an aromatic, dry white wine from Styria in Austria. The Gelber Muskateller from Weingut Wohlmuth is a wonderfully floral, enormously juicy local wine with a fresh acidic arc. On the nose and palate, it convinces with a grape-like note and a broad spectrum of aromas: from floral notes of elderflower, white tropical fruit like exotic lychee, nutmeg and a hint of pepper, and always with a fine slate spice, a wonderfully cool minerality, finesse, and precision. Here, the ingenious interplay of grape variety, soil, location, and winemaker's craft, which has a 200-year-old tradition at the Wohlmuths, is evident.

Wohlmuth – Wine Preparation

The Muskateller vines grow on extremely steep vineyard slopes on Paleozoic slate soils. Under the influence of the Illyrian climate, which brings warm winds from the Mediterranean and cool winds from the northern Alps to Kitzeck in Southern Styria, and with much manual work on the steep slopes, which requires an admirable attachment to home, this dry white wine with an unmistakable, complex fruit expression is created.

All grapes are selectively hand-picked very late. Since the vineyards are located around the winery, long transport routes are not necessary. After a maceration period of 4-8 hours, slow temperature-controlled fermentation takes place at approx. 20 degrees. To preserve the aroma and freshness, the wine is aged on fine lees until bottling at the end of February in stainless steel tanks.

The Muskateller grape variety has a long tradition, as it is considered one of the oldest cultivated grape varieties with a multitude of variants. The Gelber Muskateller is a rather late-ripening variety and finds optimal conditions for its long vegetation period at Weingut Wohlmuth in Styria. It owes its name to its typical, intense muscat aroma.

The Gelber Muskateller Kitzeck-Sausal is a classic local wine exclusively from grapes grown around Kitzeck in Southern Styria. The local appellation Kitzeck-Sausal is a geological peculiarity within Southern Styria, as the soils are significantly older than in the rest of Southern Styria and were formed over 400 million years ago with the Central Alps. The landscape is therefore rougher, which is reflected around Kitzeck not only in impressively steep vineyards with direct access but also in numerous terraced systems. The difference from the highest point of the hills to the valley floor is usually over 200 meters and is also reflected in the particular steepness of the vineyards. The vineyards are mostly located at altitudes of 380 to 650 meters, which contributes to the good aeration of the vines.

The appealing modern label is designed each year by a different young artist. In 2021, it is Der Schwarm by Thomas Riess. The internationally active artist, born in Tyrol in 1970 and now living in Vienna, Riess deals with humans and their perception of time and reality in a multimedia reality. As a graduate of the graphic arts class at the Mozarteum University in Salzburg, he also finds his creative expression through drawing, collage, and video.

Gelber Muskateller Kitzeck-Sausal – a wine and its values

• Origin Wine from Austria
• Growing region Southern Styria
• Grape variety Gelber Muskateller
• Local wine Kitzeck-Sausal
• vegan
• sustainably certified
• 12.0 % vol. alcohol
• 6.8 g/l acidity
• 3.0 g/l residual sugar