Christina Grüner Veltliner Carnuntum, 2021

Christina Netzl makes well balanced, accessible natural wine.  Indeed, her outlook on farming and winemaking is nearly as refreshing as the wines, themselves.  Growing up on her family farm just east of Vienna, right below the Danube River where Austria meets Hungary and Slovakia, her mother and father first introduced her to winemaking at the age of five.  Now, after formal training and many years working in her family’s vineyards, Christina has launched her own label.  Christina farms organically and has developed a style driven largely by her independent experiments with minimalistic techniques like spontaneous fermentation, no added sulphates, and minimal fining and filtration.  She employs these methods to highlight the unique climate of her small Carnuntum growing region, or as she puts it, “It’s the power of the nature, it’s the power of the grapes.”  This Grüner retains the structure of a classic Austrian Grüner with delicious fresh fruit, bright acidity, and great minerality. Steel aging ensures a bright, light, and crisp summer crusher.  From the light citrus and white pepper aroma, to the colorful label, a creative nod to the indigenous insects that play a crucial role in the organic farming on her vineyard, picturing bottles of this iced down and ready to kick off BBQ season has my mouth watering. Easy going, refreshing, and very food friendly.  

This wine will be a big part of our summer. -JWK