{"id":26,"date":"2020-12-16T16:12:11","date_gmt":"2020-12-16T16:12:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.wohlmuth.at\/?page_id=26"},"modified":"2023-03-13T11:28:49","modified_gmt":"2023-03-13T11:28:49","slug":"terroir","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/en.wohlmuth.at\/terroir\/","title":{"rendered":"Terroir"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
The Kitzeck-Sausal district is often referred to as an \u2018inselberg\u2019, a geological term referring to a standalone peak. It certainly contrasts sharply from the rest of South Styria. Below the surface are several of the oldest stone formations anywhere in Austria, created over 400 million years ago during the Paleozoic era when the land rose out of the primordial sea \u2014 hence the reason its barren slate soils are completely free of chalk. The witness to this natural spectacle is the raw, almost monumental landscape surrounding the town of Kitzeck, with impressively steep vineyards and numerous terraces. The vines grow primarily at elevations from 400 to 650 meters above sea level, providing their own unique microclimate.<\/p>
Climate \u2013 Influenced by the Alps and the Mediterranean<\/strong> Soil \u2013 Barren slate with rock crystals<\/strong> Gebietsweine (Regional Wines)<\/strong> Ortsweine (Village Wines)<\/strong> Riedenwein (Single Vineyard Wines)<\/strong> Grand Cru STK:<\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t Premier Cru STK:<\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t Cru STK:<\/strong><\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t Historical single sites<\/strong> Ried – An embrace of origin<\/strong>
Kitzeck-Sausal is the coolest village appellation in S\u00fcdsteiermark, and strongly influenced by alpine air currents. The steep southern exposition and coolness from the Alps deliver massive diurnal shifts, tempered by slate soils that store the day’s warmth and release it slowly by night. This singular constellation is reflected in the aromas of the ripened grapes, which tend towards complexity, intensity and a pronounced minerality.<\/p>
Rare phyllitic slate \u2014 thin layered, red and black in coloration, fairly compact in some places, with veins of quartz, sericite and potassic feldspar. <\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\tS\u00fcdsteiermark DAC -
Hand-crafted wines of origin<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
Dry wines from hand-harvested grapes. After at least a half-year of maturation in barrel or stainless steel, these wines are released onto the market on 1 March. They offer a fine representation of the diversity found throughout S\u00fcdsteiermark.<\/p>
Every village in S\u00fcdsteiermark is unique. Village-level Ortswein offers an ideal platform for highlighting those differences. Weingut Wohlmuth\u2019s Kitzeck-Sausal Ortswein are inherently imbued with the classic minerality that flows from the slate soils that define the area. To give voice to that origin, the Ortswein are afforded a longer maturation, and are bottled only after 7 to 12 months in large barrels.<\/p>
These highly expressive wines give strong voice to the terroir of their specific Ried. As STK members, the Rieds are divided into Erste and Gro\u00dfe STK Rieds. Wines from Erste STK Rieds must be matured for a minimum of 12 months in large wooden casks, while wines from Gro\u00dfe STK Rieds must be granted at least 18 months. Singular wines of tremendous aging potential.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\tSingle Vineyard<\/h1>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
Austria, unlike other German nations, denotes its single vineyards with the term \u201cRied.\u201d The potential at play in the Rieds of Kitzeck-Sausal was clear even to early settlers and was documented by name in 1322 by the Archdiocese of Salzburg. This included Ried Edelschuh, which for decades has been in the possession of Weingut Wohlmuth. In fact, each Ried that the Wohlmuth family owns, tends, cultivates and in some cases painstakingly re-cultivated has for centuries been counted among the most treasured and finely structured historic single sites in Austria.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
Origin is the greatest treasure for the Wohlmuth family. To differentiate themselves from branded wines, each classified single vineyard receives the suffix \u201cRied.\u201d This historical term, specific to Austria, derives from the Old High German word \u201criod\u201d and refers to the clearing (\u201croden\u201d) of a forest to make space for viticulture.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\tRied Edelschuh - The barren slate wall<\/h3>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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