2009 Meinklang Pinot Noir Rosa

This is a rose with a bit of effervescence. It ran me about $14 at Whole Foods - it s a biodynamic wine, organic, the label talks about cows near the vines...

Watermelon rind and cherry pits on the nose.

It's strange, when you pour a glass there's a good amount of fizz, but it fades quickly leaving not visible bubbles but an interesting foamy moutfeel. Medium body, a dry sort of watermelon thing, a bit of artificial strawberry, even a bit of red apple in a jelly bean sorta way. It's a tad thick, fruity, but not (or only very slightly) sweet.

More of that red apple jelly bean thing on the finish.

Tasty. Decently priced. Theoretically good for the planet. You can do worse.

Score: 85

2001 Kracher Zwischen Den Seen Welschriesling Trockenbeerenauslese #8

Kracher...ah, yes Kracher...some of the best dessert wines made come from this producer in Austria. This half bottle runs for, I kid you not, $80. If you live near Chicago, Binny's frequently 'end of bin' sales these so you can get them for far less if you time it right.

Potent dried fruit - apricot, mango, vanilla, plus some heat on the nose.

There are complex wines where you can rattle off a hundred things and there are complex wines where it's difficult to pull out even one. I'm going to start with peaches - not fresh though, the juice from canned peaches is what hits the palate first. Make some caramel and add a bit of vanilla and throw it in the mix as well as some golden raisins and dried apricot and perhaps a dash of honey. The mouthfeel is comparable to olive oil - thick and viscous. The wine is incredibly sweet, but it somehow manages to not be cloying - there doesn't seem to be much acid but it clearly works it all out. There is more...

A lengthy finish - a dried mango quality comes through, candied orange zest, and sugarfied peach last for minutes.

Dessert wine is tricky to even think about scoring, but this is just outstanding. It's complex, tasty, and balanced. Outrageously priced? Yes. Worth it? Perhaps. Kracher is known as being one of the best dessert wine producers on the planet, this wine proves it.

Score: 96

2007 Triebaumerg Muscato Gunter Triebaumber

An Austrian Muscato? Hmm. I don't recall the exact details on what I paid, but I do recall it being under $15.

A bit of honey and orange - sort of like an orange jam.

There's just a bit of fizz in this one despite the sparkling wine packaging. Sweet to be sure, but not cloying, mostly peach, but some apple - varying between golden and the lighter red varieties, all with a bit of some mild citrus qualities. You know, with just a bit of air this is really coming alive - almost a fruit salad - there's nectarine and pear, even a bit of honeydew melon.

I'd say mostly apple notes on the finish.

I would consider this a dessert wine and would not recommend as a table wine unless you are really into sweet stuff. That being said, it's a damn good dessert wine and easily on the list of the best muscato we've had.

Wine: 8
Value: Yes

N/V Kracher Trockenbeerenauslese

This was on clearance for fifteen bones – a 187ml bottle was a striking fifteen dollars but Kracher is a highly reputable producer – one of the finest dessert wine producers in the world, so why not?

Honey, peaches, sugar, and dare I even say grape on the nose.

Spicy peach pie filling on the palate. Orange blossom, orange marmalade, peach jam, white pepper,

More of that spicy peach on the finish, cinnamon, even some clove, maybe some candied apple,

The bottom line here is Kracher makes fantastic wines at premium prices – this bottle is your chance to get two small servings for under $20. I've had some of the higher end Kracher offerings and while I do feel they are stronger, is a half bottle worth $80 – more than double the price per ounce? I can't say for sure, but if you're starting out with dessert wine – this is the place to start if you're interested (and you should be) in Kracher.

Wine: 9
QPR: 9.5

2005 Meinklang Beerenauslese

I've had this sitting in the fridge for quite a while – I recall getting it on a great clearance deal but don't recall any specifics other than part of me thinks I paid about $8 and the retail was much higher.

A strong nose of honey and dried apricot.

Thick and viscous – honey and dried fruit – apricot, apple, peach, fig, and golden raisins – though it's quite sweet but it's really not cloying.

Dried apple is quite strong on the finish.

No complaints other than it is perhaps a bit simple.

2006 Umathum Zweigelt

Here's an interesting varietal from Austria that you don't see much of in the USA.

Black pepper and, oddly enough, grilled steak....maybe that's a combination of salt, pepper, and smoke?

Man, this is weird – this almost tastes like steak. Other than that, I'm getting some solid acid, black pepper, earth, a bit of oak, some cherry and blackberry.

The finish has spice, earth, and blackberry.

On the second day, the nose faded almost completely, I do get a bit of oak and bell pepper. The palette's Shiraz like qualities have come out more as well – lots of spice, black pepper, nutmeg, cinnamon – plus cherry and plum. The finish has some menthol notes and just a bit of alcoholic burn.

This is probably a winner for fans of Shiraz. For the price, about $13, there's nothing to complain about – this is an interesting and somewhat unique varietal and I'd gladly recommend it to someone wanting something a bit different.

2004 Freie Weingartner Wachau Gruner Veltliner

We haven't had GV in a while – this one was $10 and I believe we may have had this producer before – but this was some time ago.

The nose on this one is tough – floral notes, maybe chamomile?

Slate, minerals, stones – yep. Spice, tartness and acid with just a touch of sugar. Not much for fruit other than some extremely unripe tropical and stone fruit.. I am getting some vegetable notes – green and lima beans mainly.

The finish is quite acidic and leaves the mouth watering. A bit of peach and other (unripe) stone fruit as well...maybe even some pineapple.

I recall having two bottles of GV in the past – the first being quite good and the second we poured down the drain. This is somewhere in between. It is what it is – I won't pass GV up at a tasting but I don't see buying one again in the near future.