Statement from Josef Pleil: The 2011 vintage will be of very high quality and satisfactory volume.

“The 2011 growing season has been characterised by a flurry of heat waves, coupled with prolonged rainfall in July. Austrian winegrowers generally encountered minimal problems in the vineyards during the course of the year. Budding occurred earlier than usually experienced during an average year, with early flowering too. This has resulted in a much earlier harvest date”, explains Pleil.

“There was an occurrence of freak weather patterns with widespread frost and severe, highly destructive hailstorms during a period of gradual, gentle vine growth”, explains Pleil as he sums up the 2011 growing season. “A shockingly cold winter frost, combined with a spate of late frost during the beginning of May, resulted in severe damage to over 4,500 hectares of vines in Burgenland and Lower Austria. The damage caused has been estimated at 6.3 million Euros. As if the frost was not enough, 2011 was also marked by frequent hail storms that decimated some 4,200 hectares of vineyards. The sum of destruction to Austrian wine culture caused by severe hailstorms totals 7.8 million Euros.

On one single day on 23rd of June, hailstorms caused extensive damage to approximately 1,600 hectares of vineyards in the wine-growing regions of Neusiedlersee and Mittelburgenland. Further damage caused by severe hailstorms occurred in Lower Austria on 3rd and 4th of June (Weinviertel and Carnuntum), in Vienna on 4 June (Döbling and Stammersdorf), and on 5 June in the Steiermark (Südsteiermark wine-growing region). The most recent storm occurred on 1st of September in the Südoststeiermark.

The overall quality witnessed in the vineyards would suggest 2011 as being an exceptional vintage. However, this is still dependant upon favourable weather conditions during the harvest.