In 1991, Fred Loimer, the Langenlois winemaker experimented with bottle fermentation to produce Sekt for the first time. Three years later, he launched his first Winzersekt (grower sparkling wine) on the market. Since then he simply cannot resist his fascination with bubbles.
He is now set to launch the Langenlois Blanc de Blancs Grosse Reserve, his best yet. It will be released to the market in mid-October 2018 and will be available at the winery (Haindorfer Vögerlweg 23, 3550 Langenlois, weingut@loimer.at) and in the onlineshop (www.loimer-shop.at) or at selected retailers for around 30 euros.
A lot has happened since 1991. Loimer set up a winery to give his wines time and space. Then he converted the entire estate to biodynamic farming so that the wines would achieve even more liveliness and authentic expression. And he continued to advance the process of sparkling wine production even further. His two Sekt wines, Extra Brut Reserve and Brut Rosé Reserve, have been on the market for several years now. Both sparkling wines are made for the most part from the Zweigelt and Pinot Noir varieties and present a clear, pure direction. Now comes the tip of Loimer’s Sekt pyramid on the market: the Grosse Reserve, made entirely of white wine grapes grown solely in Langenlois.
The grapes are hand-picked grapes from cool and mineral-rich vineyard sites and are the basis for this Grosse Reserve. The vineyard parcels were specifically selected by Fred Loimer: located at an altitude of 280 to 380 meters and with a view over Langenlois, the soils here are comprised primarily of loess (which provides excellent water storage) and gneiss (responsible for the puristic, angular character). Responsible for the freshness and the dynamic acidity is the continental climate bringing hot summer days along with the cool nights sent from forests in the Waldviertel region to the north. The varieties Chardonnay (85%), Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris ensure the elegance and creaminess of the Sekt. And its poise and harmony – that’s the result of biodynamic farming.
The base wine for the 2013 vintage was first fermented in steel tanks. In June of the following year, Loimer filled the base wine into Sekt bottles for the second fermentation; following four years of maturing on the lees, the sparkling wine was finally hand riddled and disgorged in June 2018. Since there was no sweetness added to the Sekt at the disgorgement stage, it is a “Brut Nature” with a natural residual sugar level of 3 g per liter, 7.7 g / l of acidity and 12% alcohol. Another special feature: the sparkling wine is bio-dynamically certified according to respekt-BIODYN.
“One should expect three years from the date of disgorgement, which is indicated on the back label,” explains Fred Loimer. “Ideally the Grosse Reserve goes into the basement now, and then the bottle can be opened at Christmas 2020 at the earliest.”
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