NV Weingut Brundlmayer Sekt Brut, Kamptal, Austria

ABOUT THIS WINE:

The grapes are selected in September, when acidity and maturity have reached their perfect point for the base wine for our sparkling production. These grapes are sourced from different chalky parcels in our vineyards which lends the wine freshness and while most of the sites are southeast facing slopes, the wine also receives warmth. The harvested grapes are transported in small cases directly into the cellar, where they are very gently and carefully pressed.

Only the heart of the must is used for the sparkling production. It ferments in stainless steel where it also undergoes malolactic fermentation before being racked into used 300 l (or 2500 l) Austrian oak barrels with about 10% of the lees.

In the following year, the base wine is bottled together with some sugar and yeast for the secondary fermentation and gets 18 months yeast contact before the process of remuage. During the month-long process of remuage the sediment that forms during secondary fermentation is maneuvered into the neck of the bottle and up against the cork through riddling from time to time by hand.

ABOUT THIS PRODUCER:

Willi Brndlmayer farms 90 hectares of Grner Veltliner, Riesling, St. Laurent, Zweigelt and Burgundian varieties from an impressive collection of grand cru vineyards around Langenlois. In 2016 Andreas Wickhoff MW joined the estate and as general manager works alongside Willi in all aspects.

Some of the most geologically diverse terroirs in Europe are here, in the heart of the Kamptal. The Danube and Kamp rivers and the wooded hills of the Waldviertel forest create a climate with large diurnal temperature swings, essential to a long growing season. These rocky, terraced vineyards are not the steep, jagged terraces of the Kremstal or the Wachau; these are larger wider terraces, each creating its own micro climate. The most famous vineyards in the region are located in the village of Zbing. This small village is home to a number of Grand Cru (Erste Lagen) vineyards, including the Zbinger Heiligenstein, composed of 250 million year old sandstone and the Lamm, at the base of the Heiligenstein, where loess fills fissures and cracks in the sandstone. Brndlmayer has holdings in other top vineyards in the area, including Kferberg, across the Kamp river valley from the Heiligenstein, with marine deposits over primary rock, as well as the Loiserberg and Steinmassel. Brndlmayer has a very high proportion of old vines, with many plantings over 50 years old, and a parcel in the Heiligenstein planted in the 1920s.

Willi has converted some (17ha in total) of his vineyards to the Lyre training system, which he helped develop. Vines are trained low to the ground, to benefit from the warmth of the primary rock soils, then the canes are trained at an angle upward and perpendicular to the row, which doubles the sunlit and aired foliage surface and improves grape ripeness. The well-aired leaves also dry faster, thus reducing the risk of dreaded grape mildew.

As of 2019, Brndlmayer is certified organic by LACON, an outside, objective, certifying body. During harvest, multiple selections through the vineyard are made, as botrytis is never accepted. Grapes are never de-stemmed or crushed, and they are handled as minimally as possible. A tiny portion of grapes are held back, de-stemmed, and macerated for 12 hours; Willi uses these as seasoning during blending to add another dimension and tonality to the final wines.