The Stågards trace their Austrian estate’s history back nearly 1,000 years, when Benedictine monks farmed grapes and apricots on its hillsides. It took on its current name in the 1980s, after Swede Kenneth Stågard married into the family; today, his son, Urban, runs the estate with his wife, Dominique. They focus on riesling, organically farming 42 acres, including land in some of the Kremstal’s top sites. Schreck is their steepest parcel, a craggy, terraced hill of blue-slate soils rising behind the village of Stein. In 2018, it produced a sheer, lithe, nervy riesling with transparent layers of flavor. It starts from a place of earthy density, then soars, notes of lemon, lime, fresh-cut, barely ripe pineapple and stone singing out with cut-crystal clarity. The transformation from earthy to airy happens over a number of hours and continues over days, boding well for the wine’s development in bottle as well.
Schatzi Wines, Milan, NY
95
Stågard 2018 Kremstal Steiner Schreck Riesling
$45
Every week, our editors highlight a wine that intrigued them in our blind panel tastings, expanding on their tasting note in this space. These are entirely editorial choices; there are no paid placements. Subscribers can also access the original tasting note by searching here.
is W&S’s editor at large and covers the wines of the Mediterranean and Central and Eastern Europe for the magazine.
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This story appears in the print issue of April 2021.
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