90% Schiava and 10% ‘other,’ ‘Elda’ is named for proprietress Elda Mayr, from whose family this plot came, a one-and-a-half-hectare vineyard of primarily 100-year-old Schiava vines and a mix Lagrein, Merlot, Blatterle, and other, unidentified native varieties. Known locally as Vernatsch, Schiava is a thin-skinned grape native to the Alto Adige but down to only about 200 hectares in the region. The vineyard here is on a very steep hillside, the farming is certified-organic, and all work including harvest is strictly – really only possibly – done by hand. Bunches are co-fermented with natural yeasts in stainless steel tanks, and the wine is aged in 20-hectoliter French oak botti for 2 years and then for another 2 years in bottle. The 2017 ‘Elda’ wafts up like an herbal tea deserving of meditation, dried roses (stems and all), incense, cinnamon, and red plums forming its alluring bouquet. It's soothingly soft and round while simultaneously stimulating thanks to bright acidity and sour citrus notes. Finishes classically dry and salty through a remarkably fresh finale.
Heinrich Mayr’s Nusserhof estate is located high in the South Tyrolean mountains of the Alto Adige, nestled amidst the rapidly expanding outer limits of the country’s northernmost regional hub, the city of Bolzano. Stewarded by Heinrich, his wife Elda, and daughter Gloria, the Mayrs’ family land existed for almost two centuries well beyond the outskirts of this previously quaint mountain town, though the explosion of growth that proceeded WWII has now seen the estate’s vineyards all but engulfed by ever encroaching development. And while this has no doubt impacted the family’s way of life (not to mention their stunning vistas of the nearby Alps), the Mayrs have continued to stand tall in the face of urban and industrial sprawl to produce pure, singular, and unmistakable alpine-inflected wines. Organic farming and a decidedly low-tech, traditionalist approach in the cantina only further amplify their singular focus on championing the Alto Adige’s native varieties. As of very recently, Gloria is now fully in charge of her family's historical winery; but Nusserhof fans need not to worry about this change of guard, as she is incredibly open-minded and was raised in these vineyards and cellars. What’s more, the only transformations spoken of are ones that will bring back more traditional approaches to their processes – that combination means we will see many more great vintages from Gloria Mayr in the future.