Grapes: Zweigelt
Region: Styria, Austria
Vintage: 2021
Viticulture: Organic
Vinification: Direct press Rotburger (also known as Zweigelt)
Aging: Stainless steel
Fining or Filtering: None
Sulfur: Minimal added
Notes from the Importer: Karl and Eva welcomed us to their beautiful corner of South Styria at the end of March 2024 when the cold of winter hadn't quite left the slopes of the Sausal mountain that juts above their home and cellar.
Their house was once a roadside inn started by Karl's maternal grandfather. Here, copious amounts of wine was consumed by local customers and in an astute act of business (and of course one of love) Karl's mother married a man from the other side of Sausal who had vineyards on the mountain. Together they took over the inn and sold the wine they made from these vineyards.
The vineyards are planted on extremely steep slopes and have never been treated with chemical pesticides or fertilisers, and since 1998 Karl and Eva have continued the vineyard work in what is in essence the traditional way. Treatments are made with minimal amounts of sulphur and kaolin, and there is emphasis on the strategic use of "tisanes" made from plants that grow in the vineyard; nettle, horsetail and yarrow which Karl brews in two 1000lt tanks. The five-hectare vineyard area is scythed by hand and though the middle of the rows is left uncut this is a task that requires serious stamina and no small amount of skill.
The soils of the Sausal are very particular. The mountain itself is a formation that is older than the Alps and was effectively once an island and was never under the sea. Consequently, the soils are made of weathered primary rock of schist, silica and quartz - there is no limestone or clay! A relative rarity when talking about vineyards.
In March, as spring started to exert its influence on the vineyards, the profundity and diversity of plant and animal life in the vineyards was already becoming apparent, as was the relative barrenness of Koregg which has an almost mediterranean feel: here wild thyme abounds. These vineyards are teeming with life, or rather buzzing, which is due to Karl’s fastidious work.
Since 1998 the three parcels Hochegg, Koregg and Kreuzegg have gradually been replanted with Blaufrankisch, Pinot Noir, Morillon (Chardonnay) and Rotburger. Harvest normally begins towards the end of September and continues into October. Grapes are vinified by both parcel and variety, with maceration for white and red grapes for the duration of fermentation. The wines are aged in old oak barrels for a year or sometimes more and no sulphur dioxide is used at any stage. Bottling is done by hand after bottles have been rinsed in spring water. The attention to detail and diligent work in the vineyard shine through in these wines, they are very special.
