This is a question Kurtis and I have been batting around between us and other friends for a while now… Why is there no Grüner Veltliner planted in BC? Or for that matter why don’t we (consumers in BC) see ANY Grüners from other markets other than Austria. I love the balance of crisp acidity, spiciness, and rich minerality from a fine Kamptal or Wachau Grüner, but surely there are other climates in the world where this grape could thrive and produce some exciting wines.
Grüner Veltliner is a productive, relatively hardy, variety that ripens too late for most of northern Europe. It likes the cool continental climate and steep slopes of the Kamptal & Wachau, with hot days and cold nights (high diurnal temperature variability to preserve acidity) and a latitude of around 48 deg N. The Okanagan Valley, particularly Okanagan Falls or perhaps around Kelowna, seems like a good fit.
Word from Jancis Robinson is that there were 2005 plantings in Central Otago, New Zealand, so maybe in the next year or two we’ll start to see some bottles creep into our market. Also, if I understood correctly, Tim from Stoneboat Vineyards told me that they have small amounts of young Grüner vines propagating in the family nursery, so it may be readily available locally.
Maybe it’s too much of a wine-geek’s wine and there isn’t a large enough market to warrant plantings closer to home. However, even the wine created from one row or a barrel or two would definitely get snatched up by Vancouver Sommeliers in a hurry.
I’m just saying that maybe someone like Tantalus Vineyards or someone from a handfull of other BC wineries could plant some Grüner Veltliner and make a delicious wine in 4 years or so that we could all enjoy.
Thoughts?
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
4 Responses:
May 25th, 2009 at 10:23 pm
I asked my husband, the winemaker/vineyard planter, the same question - I’ll let you know if I win, it’s by far my favorite….
May 26th, 2009 at 8:07 am
It’s a good question, Jake. I wondered this too when I was in Austria a few years ago.
I don’t think it’s due to any climactic unsuitability. In fact, the OK climate could be an interesting candidate, the only caveat being I don’t know how GV does under very hot weather conditions like we get mid-summer. Soil-wise perhaps the mineral rich dirt of Vernon? Or Cawston? I don’t know what we have in the way of granite…
But, largely I think it’s a matter of trend, as you say. Availability, but also recognition and interest from winemakers. But the interest should come, once (or if) the public gets on board.
The real mystery of course, is what would Okanagan GV taste like? Would we be able to find the real charm of the variety from our terroir? It’s such a dirt-driven wine, that I think much hinges on this. Is there a risk that it manifests only as a simple wine, and is limited to this? I believe only time (vine age, perfecting vinification technique, etc) will tell, so if indeed Stoneboat is investigating, this is very intriguing.
May 26th, 2009 at 11:02 am
KH,
Yes, all valid points. It’s such a big move to plant something new (especially if that means ripping something old out), and like you said, who knows what it will taste like? Predicting trends on a large commercial scale is tricky business and a huge gamble. I love the idea of growers having small plantings of more obscure varietals just to see how they do here and how they taste, because we do have the freedom to play around viticulturally in BC and we are still on the lookout for new and interesting things. But I do also see how that could be prime chardonnay vineyard space that would sell anyways.
Who knows, maybe the gruner would lack its charming minerality and be overripe, but I’d still love to taste it. I guess we’ll have to wait and see…
March 3rd, 2010 at 12:28 pm
[...] and I have been scheming and dreaming about drinking Okanagan wine from Austrian transplants for almost a year now. My little make believe plot of Okanagan land is quickly filling with rows of Austrian grapes: [...]