For the Alto Adige Wine Summit in Valle Isarco

To arrive in South Tyrol is to fill your eyes with green. Forest-covered mountains, meadows, apple orchards and, last but not least, vineyards are oases of multi-hued greens that fill the eyes and the heart.

Yep, the vineyards. Perched on hills and mountains they are an inescapable component of the landscape and life in Alto Adige. Fragmented among a thousand owners they form one of the backbones of the economy, sublimated into the system of cooperative wineries that are run here as private enterprises and repay the sometimes impervious work of the associated winemakers with great quality.

It was therefore with great joy that I again went to the South Tyrol Wine Summit, the biennial event that presents the wines of the region to the national and foreign press. Each time a tour of a different area and at the end a great tasting with all the wines.

Valle Isarco

The area designated for the group I was part of was the Eisack Valley, that valley formed millions of years ago by glaciers and the course of the river of the same name, which unfolds between Bolzano and Sterzing, practically all the way to the Brenner Pass. It is the northernmost wine-growing area in Italy, where vineyards climb steep terraces between 400 and 1,000 meters above sea level on moraine deposit soils, sedimentary rock with quartz, schist and dolomite.

Technically the valley reaches the border, but the area involved in viticulture is the southernmost one, between Bolzano and Bressanone, and if we want to identify its most identifying part, we have to focus on the mid-valley, from above Val Gardena to Bressanone.

The first part of the valley, immediately after Bolzano, does indeed see the presence of the many grape varieties characteristic of the Bolzano area, but as we go further into the northeast, we enter the realm of grape varieties of Germanic-Austrian origin: Sylvaner, Kerner and Grüner Veltliner, as well as Riesling, of course. The first three grape varieties are practically found only here and constitute an enclave unto themselves within South Tyrolean viticulture. They share a crisp and fresh olfactory profile, clear finesse, verticality and savory saltiness, and, varietal differences aside, they constitute the true identity card of the valley: alpine wines, bright and crystal clear, capable of telling the story of the mountains.

Sylvaner, Kerner and Grüner Veltliner

The Sylvaner is the grape variety that has perhaps been at home in the Eisack Valley the longest. Cultivated for about 170 years, until 2003 it was the most important variety, but now the scepter of the Valley’s leading grape variety has passed to Kerner. However, Sylvaner remains one of the most beloved varieties, whose “alpine” spirit has always been extolled due mainly to its high acidity. It prefers the not-too-high, well-ventilated and sunny slopes, and covers a total area of 68 hectares, or 1 percent of the South Tyrolean total. Its identity card: notes of white flowers, wild herbs, apple, sometimes mineral and earthy hints.

The Kerner is a cross between Schiava and Riesling created in Germany in 1829 by August Herold. It is a grape variety that is comfortable with cold weather and is frost-resistant, so it is grown at the highest altitudes in the Eisack and Vinschgau valleys. Aromatic-precise nutmeg notes-and quite full-bodied, it has seen its fame grow in recent years. At 129 hectares, it covers 2 percent of the total vineyard in Alto Adige. Its identity card: reminiscent of Riesling, with fruity notes (peach, apricot, green apple), floral and often a hint of nutmeg or alpine herbs.

Finally, Austria’s premier grape variety: the Grüner Veltliner, which in the Eisack Valley has found its place, generally for its grace and freshness, offering here very light and drinkable wines. We find it cultivated in 27 hectares, amounting to 0.5%. Its identity card: more aromatic than Sylvaner; typical spicy notes of white pepper, citrus, green apple, sometimes a vegetal touch (celery, herbs).

Valle Isarco producers

On our tour we visited the vineyards of the two main historical entities in the Valley: theNovacella Abbey and the Valle Isarco Winery. Guests of the latter, in an elevated vineyard in Tiso overlooking the valley, we also had the opportunity to meet three small artisan producers in the area and taste their wines: Strasserhof, Pacher Hof and Kuenhof.

Abbazia di Novacella, or Kloster Neustift

The Abbazia di Novacella (for the locals Kloster Neustift) is the oldest entity: the structure dates back to 1142 and is worth the trip even for teetotalers. Owned by Augustinian fathers, it has been producing wine for nearly 900 years and currently has vineyards both in the Valley, with its characteristic white grapes, and in the warmer areas of Bolzano and Cornaiano, where red grapes are grown. The stylistics are different.

Of note, with a view to greater sustainability, is the change of bottles made by the company to reduce their weight: from 650 grams to 450.

As we climbed into the vineyard overlooking the abbey, we had a surprise when we arrived: a small table set up with the excellent Gewürztraminer Praepositus 2023, nose of rose and grapefruit, mango and apricot, full, fresh and flavorful mouthfeel, and the Sylvaner Stiftsgarden 2021, with spice of ginger and nutmeg, yellow peach and minerality, silky, elegant and fresh.

We continued the tasting once we arrived at the Cantina Valle Isarco vineyard in Tiso in the Funes Valley, 850 meters above sea level, with a splendid view of the Isarco Valley, where the other producers were also waiting for us. Then room for the Sylvaner Praepositus 2023, Aromas of alfalfa and spice. Good complexity and aromaticity in the mouth, broad and enveloping.

Personally, I liked it very much:

Alto Adige Valle Isarco Kerner Praepositus 2023 Abbazia di Novacella

Score: 94/100
Prezzo medio in enoteca: € 22

100% Kerner. Stainless steel. Straw yellow with greenish highlights. Very intense nose with distinct notes of lychee, white peach, elderflower, rosemary and thyme. Truly an excellent wine, juicy, full and deep.

Spoiler: is outstanding, to be awarded, the Riesling Praepositus 2023, but it will be released only in a few months.

Cantina Valle Isarco, or Eisacktaler Kellerei

As I said, from the Abbazia di Novacella we went to Chiusa/Klausen from the Valle Isarco winery, the valley’s cooperative (unlike other cooperatives in Alto Adige, it does not have the name of the municipality), the youngest in the province, founded in 1961 by 20 members. It currently has 150 hectares belonging to 135 families, with an average of 1.2 hectares per member. Basically, garden vineyards. About 150 thousand bottles produced, 95% white wines.

Spectacular is the terrace in the heart of the Tiso vineyards, from which one overlooks the valley.

We sampled the roundup of the 2023 from the Aristos line: the Kerner offers an intense nose of peach, apricot, green apple with herbs, mint, rosemary. Energy, structure, freshness and savoriness on the palate. Lightness in the drinkability. The Sylvaner Is fragrant with peach, herbs, green pepper, spices. In the mouth it is elegant, fresh, saline. The Grüner Veltliner Is very typical in its delicately spiced and white fruit aromas. Full, flavorful, composed and with great dynamism. The Riesling insists between peach, flint, citrus. Mouth full and vertical, long.

The treat of the tasting, however, was:

Alto Adige Valle Isarco Kerner Aristos 2013 Cantina Valle Isarco

Score: 95/100
PArezzo medio in enoteca: Fuori commercio (annata corrente € 18-20)

100% Kerner. 70% steel and then cask. Bright strawberry. Very intense hydrocarbon, light acacia honey, yellow apple, yellow spice, saffron. Then the lime comes out. Great freshness and volume, savory but vertical, very nice.

Strasserhof

With Strasserhof we go up a lot both in terms of elevation, we are around 700 meters, and in terms of geography, with the vineyards among the most northerly in the Eisack Valley. After just 50 meters the DOC zone ends, and the vineyards found at these latitudes are almost exclusively from PiWi vines (they are also trying, this year they harvested Sauvignac for the first time). Hannes Baumgartner, for his part, expresses the spirit of this extreme area with the classic grape varieties of the valley, whites with a strong personality, austere and rigorous.

Very classic is the Sylvaner 2024, notes of apple and alfalfa, a smoky tinge. In the mouth it is fresh and vibrant because of the definite saline note. The Riesling 2024 is very fruity with white peach and apricot, floral and flint hints on the nose. Juicy and lively, it has marked acidity and remarkable structure. The Kerner 2024 has in simplicity its trump card, smells minty and has excellent drinkability.

Alto Adige Valle Isarco Grüner Veltliner 2024 Strasserhof

Score: 95/100
Average price in wine shop: € 18

100% Grüner Veltliner. Steel for 7 months. Straw-yellow with greenish highlights. Great freshness on the nose with notes of citrus, green apple, herbs and white pepper. Fresh and nervous on the sip with a very savory and long finish.

Pacher Hof

Whites of great personality and elegance (there are eight white grape varieties grown) for the estate of Andreas Huber, a “Vinhotel with wine estate,” as they call themselves. The vineyards are located between 620 and 900 meters above sea level and are among the oldest in the area; the approach to viticulture is very natural and rooted in a thousand-year-old family tradition.

Among the three “musts” of the valley, vintage 2024, the Sylvaner is the classic aperitif that combines scents of cut grass with hints of pineapple, distinct acidity and vertical taste, and the Kerner Tastes of even tropical fruit, white peach and pineapple, with smoky notes. Full, drinkable, with pleasant freshness.

Alto Adige Valle Isarco Riesling 2024 Pacher Hof

Score: 94/100
Average price in wine shop: € 25

100% Riesling, from vineyards at the beginning of the Puster Valley. 8 months on fine lees in 20 and 33 hl oak barrels. Greenish straw yellow. Very citrusy and fruity peach. Flavorful and pulpy in the mouth with lively acidity balanced by residual sugar. Saline closure.

Kuen Hof

Twelfth-century farmhouse purchased about 200 years ago by the great-great-grandfather of Peter Pliger, who with his wife Brigitte and son Simon carries on the winery. 7 hectares of heroic viticulture, with vineyards climbed up to almost 900 meters and a production close to 40 thousand bottles for the 4 typical varieties of the valley. Organic and biodynamic (non-certified) vineyard management and strict work in the cellar using steel and 20-hectoliter acacia barrels.

We tasted wines from the vintage 2023, charming and pleasant. Of excellent quality is the Veltliner, green apple and white pepper. Full, juicy and very dynamic, as well as the Kaiton Riesling, which they planted in the valley first in ’93. Very typical and varietal: grapefruit, yellow fruit, alfalfa. Flavorful, elegant and vibrant.

Alto Adige Valle Isarco Sylvaner 2023 Kuen Hof

Score: 95/100
Average price in wine shops: € 20,00

100% Sylvaner from three warm, airy locations: Kuenhof, Lahner and Gasteiger. 20 hl acacia barrels and steel (60%) for 6 months. Greenish yellow. Aromas of mountain meadow with green and floral notes, plum and a delicate marine nuance. The structure is snappy, fresh and agile with a juicy and very flavorful finish.