2024 Laurenz V. Singing Gruner Veltliner, Kremstal

Medium yellow-green, silver reflections. Fine herbal savouriness, delicate apple, a hint of guava, fresh bouquet. Medium body, fine acidity, white pome fruit on the finish, salty aftertaste, already easy to drink.

90 points Falstaff

Laurenz V. was created by Laurenz Moser V, a member of one of Austria’s most influential wine families and a man who decided to devote an entire label to Grüner Veltliner. Singing is the bright, immediately likeable face of the range, made to capture everything that makes Austria’s signature white so appealing: juicy fruit, peppery freshness and that wonderfully savoury snap that makes the next glass rather inevitable.

Fruit for Singing comes principally from vineyards in the Kremstal and surrounding Lower Austrian regions, where loess and rocky soils, warm days and cooling influences from the Danube give Grüner its combination of ripeness and lively acidity. The 2024 is pitched towards freshness rather than weight, making it a terrific introduction to the variety and an extremely versatile bottle for the table.

Pale straw with green highlights, the nose is full of crisp pear, green apple and white peach, joined by lemon zest and delicate blossom. Then come the classic Grüner details: white pepper, fennel, fresh herbs and a little radish leaf. The palate is juicy and energetic, with pear and citrus upfront, a gentle savoury texture through the middle and enough peppery bite to keep things interesting. The finish is dry, refreshing and lightly spicy with a squeeze of lemon.

Give it prawn and chive dumplings, salt and pepper squid, chicken schnitzel with lemon, Vietnamese rice paper rolls or asparagus with sesame and miso. Our pick is the salt and pepper squid. Crispy batter, chilli and lemon with cold Grüner and its peppery citrus snap is dangerously uncomplicated happiness.

Cellaring: Drink now to 2030.