It was not always so. Austria was the third biggest wine producer in the world after World War I, but most of the production was exported in bulk for blending with wine from other countries. Its wine became an industrialized commodity. Finally, in the early 1980s, there were massive yields of thin, acidic wines that nobody wanted. A few unscrupulous brokers began adding diethylene glycol (antifreeze!) to their wine to impart sweetness and body. Exports collapsed in the resulting scandal, but the wine industry soon reinvented itself with strict regulations and emphasis on quality.

Grüner Veltliner is the most widely planted grape in Austria today, accounting for 37% of the country's total vineyard area. It also grows in the neighboring countries of Slovakia and the Czech Republic, but it is mostly closely associated with Austria where it has been cultivated since Roman times. Since the scandal, producers have greatly improved quality by restricting yields and picking at greater ripeness levels. Wines made this way can be astonishingly complex with notes of exotic tropical fruit, white pepper, and lentils. The best Grüners are made in three small adjoining districts along the Danube: the Wachau, Kremstal, and Kamptal. Grüner offers the advantage of being perhaps the single most versatile food wine, often surpassing even Riesling in its ability to pair with gdifficulth foods such as artichokes and asparagus.

Meinhard Forstreiter is the owner and cellar master of a 25-hectare vineyard in the Kremstal village of Krems-Hollenburg. The property has been in the Forstreiter family since 1868, but Meinhard has brought the wines to a new quality level. Most of the vines grow close to the Danube on south- and east-facing terraces of conglomerate, a rocklike formation. The unique soil and microclimate of this area produce exceptional fruity, spicy, and peppery grapes with lots of minerality. GROONER is fresh and crisp with green apple and citrus aromas and flavors, the famous white pepper bouquet, and some tropical fruit notes. With fine balancing acidity, it is perfect with veal, salads, pork, fish, chicken, asparagus, Asian cuisine, and antipasto.