Weingut Emmerich Knoll : Riesling Ried Loibenberg Smaragd 2024

Characteristics and tasting advice for the Riesling Ried Loibenberg Smaragd 2024 from Weingut Emmerich Knoll

Tasting

Appearance

The color displays a brilliant yellow hue with golden highlights.

Nose

The nose reveals remarkable mineral intensity reminiscent of flint, accompanied by aromas of crushed citrus. With aeration, notes of orange and lemon zest gradually unfold.

Palate

On the palate, this riesling charms with its fine linearity and refreshing vibrancy. A zesty texture adds energy, while a subtle yeasty touch lends complexity to the whole. The finish lingers elegantly with persistent mineral notes.

Food and wine pairings

This Riesling Ried Loibenberg Smaragd 2024 is an ideal match for fish in saffron sauce, freshwater fish in cream, or white poultry served with refined sauces.

Serving and cellaring

This Riesling Ried Loibenberg Smaragd 2024 can be enjoyed now but will fully express its potential between around 2028 and 2043. It is recommended to serve it at a temperature between 10 and 12°C.

An Austrian riesling combining minerality and complexity

The estate

The Weingut Emmerich Knoll is one of the iconic benchmark estates of the Wachau in Lower Austria. Based in Unterloiben since the early 19th century, the Knoll family began commercial wine production in the 1940s–1950s. Today, Emmerich Knoll III runs the family estate, which spans around fifteen hectares. As President of the Vinea Wachau association, he embodies the excellence of Austrian viticulture. The estate is renowned worldwide for its baroque label depicting Saint Urban, patron saint of winemakers, unchanged since 1962, and for its wines of remarkable purity, faithfully expressing their terroir of origin.

The vineyard

The Riesling Ried Loibenberg Smaragd 2024 comes from the Loibenberg vineyard, nicknamed “the hot plate of the Wachau” due to its particularly sunny, full south-facing exposure. This Wachau vineyard covers around thirty-five hectares and rises to four hundred meters above sea level. The soils are composed of loess and ancient gneiss, a metamorphic rock several hundred million years old. This distinctive geology gives the wines a marked minerality and great complexity. The warmest plots, located in the lower sections of the slope, make it possible to reach the full ripeness required for the Smaragd classification.

The vintage

The 2024 vintage in Lower Austria was marked by a relatively warm summer without excessive drought. These balanced climatic conditions enabled optimal grape ripening while preserving the freshness and natural acidity typical of cool-climate wines. The day–night temperature range, characteristic of the region, encouraged aromatic development while maintaining fine vibrancy in the berries.

Vinification and aging

The grapes for Riesling Ried Loibenberg Smaragd 2024 are hand-harvested at full ripeness. After gentle pressing, fermentation occurs spontaneously thanks to indigenous yeasts, mainly in large, neutral wooden casks. Malolactic fermentation is deliberately blocked to preserve the riesling’s natural malic acidity. The wine is then aged on fine lees for six to ten months in oak casks, allowing harmonious development of complexity without a pronounced oak influence. In accordance with Smaragd regulations, the wine is only released after a minimum period of bottle aging.

Grape variety

100% riesling