Chardonnay Smaragd Kirchweg 2017

The Kirchweg vineyard gets its name from its location along the former path to the next closest church (in St. Michael). The vineyard name counts among the oldest in the Wachau region, already mentioned in writing in 1256. The northern part of the slope is dominated by Hochrain (Ralais) weathered rock, which was deposited here over the course of time as a debris cone from a small stream.

The year began with frosty temperatures and snow in January, but the two following months were already quite warm, with the first shoots appearing very early at the beginning of April. As a risk of frost loomed again in the second week of April, the winemakers reacted very quickly and, based on their experiences in the previous year, took early measures to counteract. This time the damage was limited to a few areas, so that flowering at the beginning of June proved satisfactory. The weather remained agreeable, culminating in one of the hottest summers since temperatures have been recorded. There was hardly any rain during this time, so that the foliage rapidly started showing initial signs of drought. Drip irrigation played a major role for that year’s vines. Vineyards that were not equipped needed to be painstakingly watered on a regular basis. Thus, the winemakers were thrilled when the much anticipated rain came in mid-August, while September also saw much lower temperatures. Favoured by early budbreak and the warm temperatures, harvest in the Wachau began relatively early, in mid-September. With grapes ripening quickly, the harvest team had to work fast, and the harvest was already completed in October, rendering very clean grapes. The amount harvested was satisfactory throughout the wine-growing region, even if Riesling yields were slightly lower. The wines presented themselves with a luscious depth of fruit and concentration. Acidity levels were also pleasantly high despite the warm vintage, not unlike the wines of 2015.

Our family business is located in the historical village St. Michael in the Region „Wachau“, a World Heritage. Although the total wine growing in this region is just over 1.300 ha, Wachau is one of the most famous white wine areas in the world. Our property was bought by Mr. Leopold Bruch, the grandfather of the actual owner Richard Bruch, so our family is operating in the 3rd generation now. We operate about 3,5 ha vineyards as well as 0,45 ha apricot. The old vines which are partly over 50 years old, growing on granite in the special microclimate of the river Danube valley Wachau are an excellent basis for high quality wines. Of course we treat our vineyards as close to nature as possible, for example we don´t use herbicides. A process, well ballanced between modern technology and classical methods is the basis for our very fruity wines with advanced