What’s on the Agenda?

Two Varities and Multiple Shared Terroir: The Case of Grüner Veltliner and Riesling in Niederösterreich Seminar with John W. Haeger
On the panel: Dustin Wilson MS, Winemakers Ingrid Groiss and Peter Veyder-Malberg

Portfolio Tasting Wineries and Principals:
Kent and Lisa Callaghan of Callaghan Vineyards, Claus Preisinger, Domaine Ciringa, Todd and Kelly Bostock of Dos Cabezas WineWorks, Emmerich Knoll, Michael Reinisch of Familie Reinisch, Franz Weninger, Fritz Wieninger of Weingut Hajszan Neumann, Michael Malat, Rob Hammelman of Sand-Reckoner Vineyards, Sattlerhof, Goose Gansberger of Stift Göttweig, and special guest Noel Patterson of Dos Manos Apiaries.

John W. Haeger

Author, Historian, and wine lover, John W. Haeger was bitten by the wine bug in graduate school, and has cultivated his interest into a prolific career, writing about wine since 1986. His voice has been heard in many publications from Wine & Spirits Magazine to the San Francisco Chronicle.
John may be most well-known for his books about wine, his very first one, 2004’s, “North American Pinot Noir” earning him Louis Roederer International Wine Book of the Year for 2005. In 2008 he published his second, “Pacific Pinot Noir: A Comprehensive Winery Guide for Consumers and Connoisseurs,” and last month, John proudly debuted his newest book, “Riesling Rediscovered: Bold, Bright, and Dry.” A true renaissance man and scholar, John is a Sinologist having taught the history of Sung China at the university level. He is a member of the Society of Wine Educators and a Fellow of the American Association of Wine Economists.

Dustin Wilson, MS

Dustin Wilson is a Master Sommelier based out of NYC. His Sommelier career spans some of the top restaurants across the US, Frasca Food & Wine, The Little Nell, and RN74, to name a few.

He is best known for his role as Wine Director of the three-star Michelin restaurant, Eleven Madison Park. You might also recognize Dustin from the hit, SOMM documentary film. Recently, he has made appearances on Esquire Network’s “Uncorked” as well as the follow up documentary film, “Somm: Into the Bottle.” 2016 is a big year for Dustin, as he embarks on a new adventure, launching a retail wine business in New York City.

Ingrid Groiss

The oldest wine growing districtus in Austria, the Weinviertel DAC, is where Ingrid Groiss calls home.  Hailing from the town of Breitenwaida, in northeast Austria, near the border with the Czech Republic, Ingrid crafts wines expressive of terroir, keeping with her family’s long tradition of winemaking.

She is supremely passionate about her wines, with sustainable practices in the vineyard and minimal interference of modern technologies in the cellar.  In the Weinviertel, Grüner Veltliner prevails, and Ingrid’s wines express an inexorable connection to the land, soil, and place. Although Ingrid did not originally plan to become a winemaker and pursued other interests in a former life, the pull to continue to her family’s tradition of winzerin was too strong.  Ingrid is passionate about producing quality wine and her relationship to the Weinvertel and her vines runs deep, with her family having owned and managed a traditional tavern or heuriger in Breitenwaida, for many years.

Peter Veyder-Malberg

Peter Veyder-Malberg began his independent winemaking career in March of 2008, when he founded his winery in the Spitz an der Donau village of the Wachau districtus.

Although Veyder-Malberg may be considered a newcomer to the country’s most famous wine region, the Wachau, his vines are 15 to 57 years old. His viticultural goal when founding his winery was to acquire and restore ancient terraced vineyards that had been abandoned due to the difficulty of farming them. With varying climates, Veyder-Malberg harvests his Riesling and Grüner Veltliner grapes according to the timing of ripeness. He states, “The quality is determined by the site, the terroir.” Unlike other vinters in the region, Veyder-Malberg does not follow the Vinea Wachau, created to enforce strict quality regulations to keep wines from the Wachau at the highest level in Austria, he follows his own set of standards to ensure high-quality, “Handarbeit,” or “handmade” wines.

Noel Patterson at Dos Manos Apiaries

Noel Patterson, former sommelier now resident beekeeper at Miraval Arizona Resort & Spa. Working with bees was just a hobby for Noel at first, but after working with two veteran apiarists, he turned his passion into a business.

Dos Manos Apiaries is responsible for over 40 hives throughout the Tucson area making sure the construction and maintenance of the hives is done in a natural, treatment-free way. Noel shares his passion for bees and honey during an interactive bee experience at Miraval. He also guides guests through a sensual journey of honey, where a variety of local honeys are tasted and their terroir, like wine, is expressed through different flavor notes. Get your crackers and cheese ready, Noel is bringing his precious, sweet honey all the way to New York.

Alexandra Henry

Following up her dynamic performance at Bottles Notes & Brushstrokes, we are proud to reintroduce photographer, filmmaker, and polyglot, Alexandra Henry!! Alexandra is a multilingual creative producer with over 12 years of international experience.
Her passion for art, music, and languages is showcased through her photography, music videos and on-going documentary project featuring female street artists from all over the world. She has been twice-recognized as a Curate NYC Emerging Artist and her photographs have been internationally exhibited and published in various magazines and online. She speaks Brazilian Portuguese, Spanish, French, and Italian and holds a B.A. from Occidental College in Diplomacy & World Affairs. Alexandra will make us all feel like stars at our Grand Tasting. Don’t shudder at her shutter and remember to smile!

Liza Tudor of Flip Booked

Spoiler Alert! Those of you joining us at Back Label Wine Merchants will get a chance to take home one-of-a-kind flip books courtesy of Colorado ‬company Flip Booked LLC. Recently interviewed by Great Big Story, for her socially conscious work with inmates, artist Liza Tudor is buzzing! We are lucky to have collaborated with such a great company. Here she is in the studio, working on our project with Weingut Malat Crazy Creatures Grüner Veltliner helping to stimulate the creative juices. Books have been made for each of our Winery Friends so check them all out.