Moric Ist Da
"Moric is Here."
Run, don't walk, to find these astoundingly unique wines by Roland Velich.
Last spring, I chatted with Roland and his brother Heinz. My conversation and tasting of their wines wrought this little piece of wine writing:
Velich Seewinkel Wild
Near the southeastern shore of Lake Neusiedl lies a wine region called Seewinkel. As far as European winemaking locations go, it's a fairly wild place. Seewinkel is dotted with numerous small lakes lying in alkaline depressions. In fact, some of the lakes contain salty water, while others evaporate entirely during hot summer months. Strong gusts of wind blow across low vegetation and wide open sky. There are also herds of cattle dotting the landscape. This ruminant, which has been herded in the region for centuries, looks like something along the lines of a longhorn-water buffalo hybrid. This is the atypical landscape in which the Velich family produces some of Austria's best dry white and dessert wines.
Hi Beau!
Thanks for the shout out about the Moric. Stephan also wrote a rather epic piece about Roland, his philosophies, the history of his vines, his vinification process, etc. etc. Folks can find it in our WinemongerTalk section.
Posted by: Emily | 08 March 2007 at 01:12 PM
Hi Beau,
First I saw your name on something in the Deseret News about food, and now I see it in Salt Lake City magazine, so I'm wondering, do you live in Salt Lake? If so, we must have dinner sometime, or maybe even try to organize the local food/wine bloggers a bit. I know there are a couple of others here. I've met Vanessa of She Craves, who isn't blogging much, but still writes about food for Salt Lake City magazine. Anyway, very curious here, and would love to meet you if you're in Utah.
Posted by: Kalyn | 09 March 2007 at 08:37 AM
D'accord with the quality of Roland's wines, even the basic cuvée is serious and makes fun. Try to find the Neckenmarkter 2004. One correction: Roland did not buy a winery in Mittelburgenland, he just buys the grapes from contracted vintners. His vinery is located more in the north near Eisenstadt.
Posted by: pivu | 18 May 2007 at 01:23 AM
Ciao Pivu. Thanks for the correction. I now recall Roland saying that to me. I believe I sampled the Neckenmarkter '03, but have yet to sip the '04
Posted by: beau | 18 May 2007 at 05:13 AM
The 2003's are all but sold out (I think we have 1 bottle of the Alte Reben left, and just a few of the basic Neckenmarkter). The 2004's are on the ocean and will be available in about 8 weeks, but quantities are VERY small. To give you an idea- the largest wine retailer in Austria only got 34 bottles of the Alte Reben. We got a few more...but not many!
Posted by: Emily | 23 May 2007 at 07:40 PM