Austria 2022

At approximately 40 hectares, the Setzberg vineyard is the largest single vineyard in the Hirtzbergers’ home village of Spitz. And it’s a dream site for Riesling. The 2022 Setzberg is full of passionfruit and lime aromas, some white peach on the palate, and a spine of racy acidity. This is long, complex, and livelier than a Cocker Spaniel. Don’t miss it.

‘Smaragd’ denotes grapes picked with the highest level of ripeness, and in 2022 the Axpoint Grüner Veltliner is intensely concentrated with yellow tropical fruits that jump out of the glass. There’s a velvety texture, perfectly judged acidity, and an extraordinary length. This is completely captivating in its youth, but there’s no doubt that it has the structure to age for a long, long time.

The 2022 Honivogl is all about salinity, herbaceousness, and restraint. Delicate aromas of ripe Bosc pear and watercress are evident on the nose, while on the palate, there’s an umami character that complements the fruit. If you like ponzu sauce, you’ll absolutely love this.

With an estate based in the southwestern corner of the Wachau Valley, five generations of Hirtzbergers have tended their 12 hectares of precipitously steep vines that overlook the Danube. Riesling Singerriedel is their flagship wine, and many would argue that it’s the finest Riesling in all of Austria. Each vine in Singerriedel is individually hand tended and inspected around one hundred times in the season, and this attention to detail translates into a showstopping wine that is an authentic expression of place and vintage. In 2022, the nose shows a hint of orange blossom and white stone fruit, while the palate is a perfect balance between structure and finesse. It’s elegant, immensely pleasing, and clearly world-class.

This is a spectacular Grüner sourced from gneiss, schist and brown soils in the Hirtzberger family’s southwestern corner of the Wachau. The vineyards are set on precipitously steep terraces above the Danube, and the process of hand-farming the land is extremely labour-intensive. The 2022 iteration of the Rotes Tor Grüner Veltliner is rich and textured, brimming with yellow apple notes, and balanced with a spine of vibrant acidity. This is always one of Franz Hirtzberger’s most impressive wines, and it stands out in 2022.