Weinlaubenhof Kracher scores high: the WTA nominee’s excellent tasting rates from Falstaff 2023/24
Weinlaubenhof Kracher from Burgerland, Austria, is a family wine estate and a WTA 2023 nominee in the Visiting Card of the Country / Must Visit category. It is currently run by Gerhard Kracher, the son of the famous winemaker Alois Kracher. After training in business administration, Gerhard began to work actively in the winery, to make contacts and to bring in and implement his ideas and visions.
Together with his fellow winemakers, Alois Kracher has created a whole range of premium high-class wines. His son Gerhard Kracher continues this successful cooperation, celebrating his father‘s legacy. This not only includes a world-famous winery, sought-after wines with top ratings and the responsibility to continue this, but also character traits such as the spirit, strength and indomitable will that Gerhard inherited from his famous father.
Together with his father, he planned and carried out the transformation of the winery, step by step he took over responsibility in individual markets, represented the winery at various events worldwide and gained important experience with the distribution partner in the USA. Today he runs the winery with the support of his wife Yvonne.
Throughout the year, on a daily basis, Kracher family warmly welcomes guests for winery visits and tastings under the vine arbor or in their vinotheque. A large selection of dry white and, of course, sweet wines is available for tasting, including the award-winning Trockenbeerenauslese from their premium collection.
The wine tourism complex of Weinlaubenhof Kracher offers tourists wonderful accommodation facilities: Kracher Hotel, Kracher Guesthouse and Kracher Landhaus, all located in Illmitz, in the middle of the Neusiedlersee National Park. In total, they offer twenty eight double rooms, five apartments and one vacation house. All objects were newly created or renovated in 2021 and 2022. The competent and friendly vinotheque team is happily guiding guests through the tasting.
One of the most recent achievements of Weinlaubenhof Kracher is a selection of exceptionally high rates that their wines have been given by Peter Moser, a wine expert and wine critic from Falstaff, a reputable and influential international wine guide published in Austria. Mr Moser tasted the wines of 2020 and later vintages and rated them for the Falstaff Wine Guide Austria 2023/24. Here’s the list of the high-scoring Kracher wines:
2020 Kracher Welschriesling Zwischen den Seen — 98 points;
2020 Kracher Grande Cuvée Nouvelle Vague — 97 points;
2020 Kracher Rosenmuskateller Nouvelle Vague — 97 points;
2020 Kracher Scheurebe Zwischen den Seen — 96 points;
2020 Kracher Traminer Nouvelle Vague — 95 points;
2020 Kracher Zweigelt Nouvelle Vague — 94 points;
2020 Kracher Beerenauslese Cuvée — 94 points;
2021 Kracher Beerenauslese Zweigelt — 94 points;
2020 Kracher Beerenauslese Rosenmuskateller “Red Roses” — 94 points;
2022 Kracher Auslese Cuvée — 94 points;
2021 Kracher Auslese Muskat Ottonel — 93 points;
2022 Kracher Auslese Zweigelt — 93 points;
2022 Kracher Spätlese Cuvée — 93 points;
2022 Kracher Spätlese Rosé — 92 points.
Below is a brief survey of the top 5 Kracher 2020 wines which have been granted the highest scores, with tasting notes by Peter Moser.
2020 Kracher Welschriesling Zwischen den Seen (98 points)
Category: sweet and dessert wines.
Grape variety: Welschriesling.
Ageing: 30 months in steel tanks.
Tasting from 10.07.2023: Peter Moser.
Colour: intense yellow gold. Nose: delicate spicy herbs, fine yellow tropical fruit, dried fruit notes, candied orange zest, subtle nuances of chocolate, rich bouquet. Palate: juicy, elegant, with fine tones of white stone fruit, silky texture, well-integrated sweetness, seamless, light and vivacious style, very seductive, lengthy finish. Ageing potential: high.
2020 Kracher Grande Cuvée Nouvelle Vague (97 points)
Category: sweet and dessert wines.
Grape variety: Welschriesling, Chardonnay.0
Ageing: 15 months in wooden barrel, 15 months in barrique.
Tasting from 10.07.2023: Peter Moser.
Colour: intense yellow gold with copper tones. Nose: delicate nougat and caramel, fine notes of yellow tropical fruit, ripe yellow apple, a touch of vanilla, rich bouquet. Palate: full-bodied, substantial, with nuances of ripe sweet fruit, fine wood notes, mineral tones, well-balanced. Finish: pleasant and lengthy. This wine is ready-to-drink and versatile, with a certain ageing potential.
2020 Kracher Rosenmuskateller Nouvelle Vague (97 points)
Category: sweet and dessert wine.
Grape variety: Rosenmuskateller.
Aging: 30 months in barrique.
Tasting from July 10th, 2023: Peter Moser.
Colour: deep red gold (onion peel), ocher reflections, wide edge brightening. Nose: fine nuances of strawberry confit, rose petals, highlighted with some canned peaches, very attractive bouquet with floral nuances. Palate: juicy, elegant, silky texture, fine spiciness, red berry notes, pleasant sweetness, mineral-salty finish with a hint of nougat and yellow peach tones.
2020 Kracher Scheurebe Zwischen den Seen (96 points)
Category: sweet and dessert wine.
Grape variety: Scheurebe.
Ageing: 28 months in steel tanks.
Tasting from July 10th, 2023: Peter Moser.
Colour: intense golden yellow, silver reflections. Nose: delicate floral tones, a hint of yellow tropical fruit, some honey blossom, candied lime zest, highlighted with ripe mango, a rich and appealing bouquet. Palate: firm, tight-knit, with nuances of white fruit, good structure, fine acidity, mineral and elegant, well-integrated sweetness, and a lengthy finish with a salty touch. This wine demonstrates a very good ageing potential.
2020 Kracher Traminer Nouvelle Vague (95 points)
Category: sweet and dessert wine.
Grape variety: Traminer.
Ageing: 26 months in barrique.
Tasting from July 10th, 2023: Peter Moser.
Colour: intense golden yellow, silver reflections. Nose: delicately smoky-pithy, with subtle notes of honey blossom, nuances of yellow fruit, mango, fine bready botrytis tones, spices. This wine needs some air (decanting) before consumption to open up the rich aromatic bouquet. Palate: full-bodied, elegant, with fine tones of stone fruit, good freshness and balanced acidity. Finish: pleasant, lengthy, with nuances of white fruit and delicate nougat. General impression: well-balanced, easy to drink.
The WTA team congratulates Weinlaubenhof Kracher with the outstanding results of this season‘s Falstaff tasting, and wishes them an equally, or more exceptional 2023 vintage!