The 2006 Zierfandler Mandel-Hoh smells ripely and mouth-wateringly of quince, marzipan, gentian, and violets, saturates the palate with lush compote of apples, quince and mango, wreathed in flowers and accepted by bitter-sweet grapefruit zest. The piquant, persistently floral, bitter-sweet, zesty, as well as subtly stony finish is truly haunting. Once you experience Mandel-Hoh you’ll be hooked. This wine has virtually cult status in Austria, yet the price is not at all outrageous, and Stadlmann sees fit to share some with the United States. The affable Johann Stadlmann is by all accounts (as well as my limited experience) the leading grower in the Thermenregion south of Vienna, where he demonstrates the distinctive wiles of this sector’s Rotgipfler and Zierfandler grapes, while also crafting some outstanding examples of more familiar traditional Austrian varieties. I only had opportunity to taste a subset of his 2005s and 2006s but as a group, they were impressive, and his Mandel-Hoh Zierfandler is a wine that simply must be experienced.Importer: A Bill Mayer Selection, The Age of Riesling, Berkeley, CA; tel. (510) 549-2444