March 5th-Rotgipfler

Rotgipfler is a white grape believed to be indigenous to the Thermenregion in Lower Austria. This area has been making wine since the Golden Ages but had a rebirth in the 1980s following a scandal when it was found that winemakers were adding diethylene glycol (commonly known as antifreeze) to their wines. This adulteration was done to increase sweetness in the wines to compete with wines from other areas. Thankfully, no harm was reported but resulted in the government establishing new stricter wine laws to control labeling and quality of the wines produced. Thermenregion consists of two subregions, the north which borders the eastern edge of the Alps and the south that includes the Vienna Basin. The north, with more sloped vineyards and higher altitude, mainly produces white wines while the south mainly produces red wines. According to the Thermenregion DAC website, plantings of Rotgipfler are almost exclusively in Thermenregion and account for about 5.2% of total regional vineyards. The grape is an offspring of Traminer (Savignin) and Roter Veltliner. The grape was originally discovered by a pharmacist in the mid 19th century then exported to the Alsace region of eastern France, but never caught on in the region.