F.X. Pichler Grüner Veltliner Smaragd Liebenberg 2014

Piercing and aromatic from the first sniff, juniper, blackcurrant and a botanical sharpness that sets the Liebenberg apart as something distinctly its own. There's a gin-like quality here that's arresting rather than odd, underpinned by the kind of stony mineral backbone that the Wachau's finest sites reliably produce. The texture is composed and precise, with acidity that keeps everything taut and a finish that lingers with herbal clarity. A serious, high-toned Grüner that demands time.