Weingut Dorli Muhr, Carnuntum, Austria

Dorli Muhr discovered her love for wine while studying at university, where she trained as an interpreter. She went on to found Wine&Partners, a PR agency specialising in communication for wine, gourmet products and the culinary world. Her family had long owned a small parcel of vines in the Ried Roterd, which ultimately inspired her to start her own wine project. In 1995, she began replanting fallow parcels on the Spitzerberg, and in 2002, together with her then-husband Dirk Niepoort, Dorli produced her first wines. Over time, further parcels were acquired, and today the estate covers just over 12 hectares. Dorli’s daughter Anna Niepoort is now also involved in the business.

The Spitzerberg lies in a narrow corridor between the Leithaberg (Alps) and the Hundsheimer Bergen (Little Carpathians), creating a unique microclimate with strong air currents and low rainfall. In winter, an icy wind whistles around the mountain, while in summer temperatures can reach close to 40°C. Late-summer and autumn nights, however, are distinctly cool. This combination allows the grapes to achieve excellent ripeness while maintaining moderate sugar, and therefore alcohol, levels. The cool autumn nights also help preserve the wines’ fresh acidity. The soil is dominated by thick layers of limestone, partly stony and partly sandy.Vinification takes place primarily in open vats, with each parcel fermented separately. Spontaneous fermentation with wild yeasts proceeds slowly, allowing gentle extraction of colour, tannins, and aromatics. Another key to the wines’ remarkable freshness is the use of stems: at least a quarter of every lot is fermented as whole clusters, either mixed with de-stemmed berries or trodden by foot. The wines are then aged for around twenty months in old oak and acacia casks, and are typically bottled without filtration.