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Juris Vineyard's Grapevines & Soil
Stetson and Krystin in Vienna, Austria
Axel Stieglmar, Weingut Juris, measuring the ripeness of the grapes (brix) with a refractometer
Whirlwind Tour of Juris Winery
Posted 08 23 2009 by webeditor 0 CommentsJuris Vineyard's Grapevines & Soil
The Juris Winery Tour
Juris Vineyard Soil
The Juris Vineyard is located on a raised plateau of pebbles and loam. This dry farmed vineyard produces small amounts of flavor packed grapes. Also, they utilize cover crop and no herbicides in any of their vineyards. If weeds become excessive, they plow to eliminate them and then spread straw down the rows and under the vines to prevent water loss from the constant drying winds.
Notice the double stalked vines in the photo above? This is their clever way of increasing plant density in the vineyard while keeping it easy to farm. The double stalked vines are actually two plants right next to each other. This method was first implemented by Axel's father, Georg Steigelmar, who continues to influence Axel.
After tasting the wines of Juris, it is clear that their goal is to produce wines that are regional, varietally correct, vintage specific and widely appealing. Some of Juris' wines can be consumed upon release and some should age. Their wines will reward both the eager and the patient in their own way.
Wines of Juris
Select Wine Tasting Notes from the Visit to Weingut Juris:
2007 Juris Villa Syrah Barrel Sample, Lake Balaton Region, Hungary: The grapes are grown by Axel's father in Hungary. Axel handles the wine making at Juris in Austria. It is a dark Northern Rhone in style wine with aromas and flavors of luscious black fruit, pepper, fennel and eucalyptus. From the barrel, it had a lean mouth feel with angular structure. I can't wait to taste the finished wine. It's quite distinctive.
2007 Zweigelt Selection: Fresh, fruity, earthy, clean and complex with nice tannin structure. There were flavors and aromas of black cherry, forest floor and dried leaves.
2007 Pinot Noir and St. Laurent Selection: I have tasted St. Laurent and of course Pinot Noir before, but tasting them in Austria was a completely different experience. These wines are built to age.
2006 Pinot Noir Reserve: This wine has been nominated for top red wine in "Salon Guide". This stands out as one of my favorites. It's really stylish, young but profound. The flavors and aromas that stood out were sweet spice (cloves), and oak.
2006 St. Laurent Reserve: This was the top wine for me. It's balanced and exotic. I can't wait to see this available in the US.
Both of the 2006 Reserves were off the charts good and very special wines.
--Stetson
A visit to this winery started with a tour of the vineyards. Axel Stiegelmar of Weingut Juris, took us on a whirlwind tour of his vineyards. We had the pleasure of sampling his Pinot Noir and St. Laurent grape varietals. It was great to taste the grapes off the vine and you can really taste the difference between the two varietals before they become wine.
Juris Vineyard Soil
The Juris Vineyard is located on a raised plateau of pebbles and loam. This dry farmed vineyard produces small amounts of flavor packed grapes. Also, they utilize cover crop and no herbicides in any of their vineyards. If weeds become excessive, they plow to eliminate them and then spread straw down the rows and under the vines to prevent water loss from the constant drying winds.
Notice the double stalked vines in the photo above? This is their clever way of increasing plant density in the vineyard while keeping it easy to farm. The double stalked vines are actually two plants right next to each other. This method was first implemented by Axel's father, Georg Steigelmar, who continues to influence Axel.
After tasting the wines of Juris, it is clear that their goal is to produce wines that are regional, varietally correct, vintage specific and widely appealing. Some of Juris' wines can be consumed upon release and some should age. Their wines will reward both the eager and the patient in their own way.
Wines of Juris
Select Wine Tasting Notes from the Visit to Weingut Juris:
2007 Juris Villa Syrah Barrel Sample, Lake Balaton Region, Hungary: The grapes are grown by Axel's father in Hungary. Axel handles the wine making at Juris in Austria. It is a dark Northern Rhone in style wine with aromas and flavors of luscious black fruit, pepper, fennel and eucalyptus. From the barrel, it had a lean mouth feel with angular structure. I can't wait to taste the finished wine. It's quite distinctive.
2007 Zweigelt Selection: Fresh, fruity, earthy, clean and complex with nice tannin structure. There were flavors and aromas of black cherry, forest floor and dried leaves.
2007 Pinot Noir and St. Laurent Selection: I have tasted St. Laurent and of course Pinot Noir before, but tasting them in Austria was a completely different experience. These wines are built to age.
2006 Pinot Noir Reserve: This wine has been nominated for top red wine in "Salon Guide". This stands out as one of my favorites. It's really stylish, young but profound. The flavors and aromas that stood out were sweet spice (cloves), and oak.
2006 St. Laurent Reserve: This was the top wine for me. It's balanced and exotic. I can't wait to see this available in the US.
Both of the 2006 Reserves were off the charts good and very special wines.
--Stetson
Stetson & Kristyn Do the Danube
Posted 08 22 2009 by webeditor 0 CommentsStetson and Krystin in Vienna, Austria
We're on a journey through the wine regions of Austria, Slovenia and Croatia. We're here in Austria right now and we have a lot to say (maybe too much), but not enough time to say it. So, enjoy watching our video describing what we've learned and found so far on our wine adventure.
--Stetson and Kristyn
--Stetson and Kristyn
Touchdown in Austria!
Posted 08 21 2009 by webeditor 0 CommentsAxel Stieglmar, Weingut Juris, measuring the ripeness of the grapes (brix) with a refractometer
Axel Stiegelmar of Weingut Juris promptly greeted us at the airport and whisked us away to his vineyards in Gols, near Lake Neusiedlersee in Burgenland Austria. Literally, our first stop was this vineyard. Here he checks the sugar on his St. Laurent with refractometer. Everything is looking pretty good for the 2009 vintage!
Barrel TastingAfter getting a great tour of his expanding vineyard holdings we explored the winery, did a bit of barrel and new release tasting, and then had an amazing lunch at Restaurant Alain Weissgerberg. It was a genuine pleasure to share this afternoon at such a fabulous restaurant with Axel and his wife Herta. They truly love food, wine, and the sharing of both. Axel even opened a bottle of Tricata, his Amarone style Blaufränkisch. It's an unusual approach to an unusual grape but one that surprisingly works. This wine flaunted its incredible range as it opened up. Come the holidays, this would be an absolute show stopper of a wine!
--Stetson and Kristyn
Barrel Tasting
--Stetson and Kristyn
Preparation for Wine Adventure
Posted 08 19 2009 by webeditor 0 Comments
We are about to enjoy a night of burgundy and food before we head off to Austria, Slovenia and Croatia. Our bags are packed and ready to go. I doubt we will be sleeping tonight, but that it is what the flight is for! We will try our best to blog about our journey daily, but if you don't hear from us...squawk!
A very special thanks to Frank and Zsuzsa of Blue Danube Wine Company who have made this trip possible. Words cannot describe how much we appreciate it.
--Stetson and Kristyn
A very special thanks to Frank and Zsuzsa of Blue Danube Wine Company who have made this trip possible. Words cannot describe how much we appreciate it.
--Stetson and Kristyn
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