Austrian Riesling vintage recommendation

I’m looking to backfill some Austrian rieslings. Which vintages do you guys recommend? and which vintages do you recommend I avoid?

For relatively recent vintages
Recommend: 2013, 2017, 2010
Avoid: 2015
Good, not great: 2009, 2012, 2016(?)
Meh: 2011, 2014

Here’s you versus the Wine Spectator.

It looks like 2010 & 2015 would be the points of disagreement [although it’s curious how an ostensible 100-point-scale has been compressed down to a mere 8 gradations, from 87 to 94].
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Well, “taut Rieslings” sounds pretty good to me! Actually, 2010 wines on release could be downright lean and austere. But they have really blossomed over a decade, and imo the vintage has become really very good.

2015, otoh, was warm, just like most of Europe. Big, ripe, lush, sometimes fat, even syrupy Rieslings. Not for me.

+1

I also agree with Alan’s recommendation of 2013 and 2017(although I am just tasting them).

For 2015, I do think that Schloss Gobelsberg Riesling Tradition is fabulous, and Alzinger’s Federspiel Durnsteiner Riesling is lovely. Beyond that 2015 has underwhelmed me.

Yeah, I was thinking exactly the same thing.

I’m getting to the point now where I can’t even understand most professional wine criticism anymore.

It’s like they’re speaking in martian.

For instance, recently there was a front page thread on WB about a board favorite getting a 100-pt score from a famous critic, and after reading the tasting note in question, I had no idea whatsover as to what it might feel like to actually put that particular wine in one’s mouth.

Recently released and generally available, the 2017 Rieslings are wonderful.

Beyond the usual suspects (e.g. Brundlmayer, Gobelsburg, Alzinger…I have not yet had any 2017s from Hirtzberger or Pichler), Hirsch made fabulous Rieslings in 2017. The 2017 Hirsch Heiligenstein is a wonder.

Well, there are a lot of different Riesling growing regions in Austria (Wachau, Kamptal, Kremstal, Traisental, Weinviertel, Wagram, Thermenregion, Burgenland …), so it´s very hard to tell generally, and even in the Wachau there is a huge difference between e.g. Spitz and Loiben … and moreover different growers are more or less successful in certain vintages – and even in mean vintages some wines are great successes - and it´s also depending on wheather you prefer rather intense and opulent wines … or less heavy but elegant wines … but very generally:

5* 2013, 2009, 2001, 1999, 1997, 1993
4* 2017, 2010, 2007, 2002, 2000, 1995, 1990
3* 2018, 2016, 2015, 2012, 2011, 2006, 2005, 2003, 1998, 1992
2* 2008, 2004, 1994,
1* 2014, 1996, 1991

The bolded text is very important. I don’t buy vintages in Austria or pretty much anywhere else, I buy producers and wines. Asking for such a general vintage rating doesn’t make much sense to me if buying wines for my cellar. If confronted on a list with growers I don’t know would be the only time that would be meaningful, IMO.

I’ve actually found 2004 and 2008 to be pretty good vintages. Nikolaihof’s Steiner Hund in 04 and 08 are both stunningly good.

A few pretty good, even stunning wines doesn´t make an excellent vintage.

See the sentence Nathan bolded above …

Glad I am not the only one who really likes 2002.

Even better in Grüner Veltliner …