Domaine Ott is a Biodynamic estate in Feuersbrunn am Wagram in the Wagram region of Lower Austria (Niederosterreich) in Austria. It specializes in Grüner Veltliner (his peers call him ‘Mr Grüner Veltliner’). Owners the Ott family have been growing and producing wine in the Wagram since 1889. Bernhard Ott (4th generation) has managed the winery since 1995, having taken over from this his father. He expanded the estate to 28 ha whilst going Biodynamic. He also acquired new stainless steel tanks, and began bottling everything under Stelvin. He received Austria’s highest accolade as Falstaff’s Winemaker of the Year in 2008.
Vineyards: 27ha in Feuersbrunn and Engabrunn. 90% Grüner Veltliner, 10% Riesling.
Top sites and soil types: Feuersbrunner Spiegel, Feuersbrunner Rosenberg, Engabrunner Stein (loess, Gföhler gneiss, sand, chalk, and red gravel). Two large vineyard sites called Feuersbrunner Spiegel and Feuersbrunner Rosenberg on the south facing slopes of Feuersbrunner Hengstberg (371 m). The gentle loess terraces are calcareous and provide excellent water storage. The northern boundary is a mixed forest on Tertiary gravel soil. In close proximity are the Zöbinger Heiligenstein, Kammerner Gaisberg and Strasser Wechselberg vineyard sites.
Biodynamics: Bernhard Ott started with Biodynamics 2006 under the guidance of Andrew Lorand in the Lower Austria (Niederösterreich group (Loimer, Hirsch, Fritsch, Graf Hardegg, (Zull). He was spending a lot of money in new machines and other stuff to realize his and Lorand’s visions of BD. He is very close to Lorand and is working at a high bd-level. Bd and even anthroposophy is part of his life. He produces very authentic wine (100% white wine, about 80% Gruner Veltliner). The style I would say is baroque: clean juicy fruit, little sugar, but more and more minerality and freshness since introducing bd. Nice, authentic guy. In Austria he is called Mr. Veltliner. He told me at Tenuta Manincor 24th June 2016 he only worked the soil lightly, shallowly to 6cm with a blade so as not to turn over the top soil.
Biodynamic Certification: 2006 Andrew Lorand started consulting. 2009 [guess] 30-ha (AB for the first time) by Lacon/RESPEKT.
White wines
Gemischter Satz: Not tasted.
Grüner Veltliner, Der Ott: Ott’s premiere line of Grüner Veltliner’s begins with “Der Ott,” made from the younger, 10-12 year old vines from the top three Erste Lage sites – Spiegel, Stein and Rosenberg. | 2010 Organic. 100% wild ferment. 13%. | 2015 Grüner Veltliner Der Ott. Nice green fruit, plumptious, clean, savoury, weighty, lovely texture to this at dinner at the Seehof Keller 23 June 2016. Interesting citrussy nose; clean and clear green fruit and spice in there; nice weight on the palate, freshness and mouthwatering acid in balance with the weight of the wine. Again, very good acidity, really vibrant, salty, good mouthweight and lovely texture at Tenuta Manicor 24th June 2016.
Grüner Veltliner, Der Ott, Feuersbrunn: 2018 Qualitatswein. Hand picked. 12.5% alc. Contains sulfites
Quevre (Amphorae): Qvevre is made from a selection of Grüner Veltliner from one of Bernhard Ott’s top sites called Rosenberg (löss soils, south-facing terraces.) The grapes are destemmed, gravity pressed, and transferred into 500 to 2,000 litre clay qvevre from Georgia. Fermentation is spontaneous and slow (lasting several months) as the juice, seeds, and skins comingle. After the full fermentation ends, the qvevre is sealed with a mixture of mud and clay. It is then left to age for upwards of 8 months. | 2013 13.5%. 6 months on skins. Made with only clear wine–the marc is removed and distilled. Wine goes back to the amphora. MLF. Incredible acid, lovely texture at Tenuta Manicor 24th June 2016.
Grüner Veltliner, Faß 4, Wagram: 2015 From 16 single plots. Mainly loess. Wild. Complex. 12.6% alcohol + 1.6g/l RS at Tenuta Manincor 24th June 2016.
Grüner Veltliner, Am Berg, Wagram: Grüner Veltliner.
Grüner Veltliner, 1000 Rosenberg: Wagram. Vines planted in 1956 on the terraces of the Feuersbrunner Rosenberg [see below]. Fermentation in stainless steel followed by 18 months ageing on the lees.
Rosenberg 10TW Grüner Veltliner: 2017 13%. 60 year old vines. South. Loess. Spontaneous ferment in steel. 1.7 g/l RS.
Grüner Veltliner, Engabrunn, Edition Paula Bosch: 2018 Kamptal. 12.5% alc. Oily texture, viscous, bright green and yellow fruit, salty and lightly mouthwatering beneath evidently rich and appetising fruit (tasted Aug 2019).
Grüner Veltliner, Ried Feuersbrunner Rosenberg, Wagram DAC: This Erste Lage produces the top Grüner Veltliner. Acquired by Bernhard’s father in 1961 with vines dating back to 1956. The site is convex and wind-protected at 230-360 m above sea level. South-facing.The soils here are deep loess. | 2017 13% alc.
Grüner Veltliner, Spiegel, Wagram: Vineyard soil: conglomerate. The Feuersbrunner Spiegel Erste Lage (Ried Feuersbrunner Spiegel) is composed of red gravel and loess which contributes a more classical Grüner Veltliner pepperiness and profile. The house’s classic representation of fine Wagram Grüner Veltliner. The highest elevation among Ott’s three Grand Crus, thus the coolest and breeziest. The soil is gravel over conglomerates. | 2012 Nice pepper, mid-palate wight, very savoury, balanced, long at Manicor 24th June 2016. | 2017 Ried Spiegel, Wagram. 13%. Soft, lightly spicy fruit, with green citrus and light white pepper. Tangy-saline mouthfeel. Understated weight and power. Elegant (tasted Dec 2019).
Grüner Veltliner, Ried Engabrunner Stein: The Engabrunner Stein Erste Lage, rests on the border of Wagram and Kamptal, technically belonging to the Kamptal region. Soils of gneiss, chalk and loess, as well as red and yellow sands. The Grüner Veltliner are old vines, the oldest of which were planted in 1957. The wine receives a 30 hour maceration on the skins. The subsoil is the so-called Gföhler gneiss (such as is in the Gaisberg, for example) with a sandy-loess topsoil. Bernhard leased the vineyard in 2006, as part of a growth phase. | 2015 13% alc.
Wagram vom Rotem Schotter: Riesling vom Rotem Schotter is dry and produced from red, gravelly soils at a higher elevation than his Grüner Veltliners. Fermented and aged in stainless steel before being bottled under Stelvin closure.
Riesling, Feuersbrunn: Riesling Feuersbrunn comes from 10ha rented since 2015. Near forest. Cold, windy. 370 metres. 4 parcels planted 1989+. Red gravel. | 2015 Savoury at Tenuta Manincor 24th June 2016.
Other crops: 10-ha of apricots.
Contact
Weingut Bernhard Ott
Neufang 36
A-3483 Feuersbrunn am Wagram
Tel+43 02738.2257 | www.ott.at