Austrian wine is certainly getting the esteem it deserves. Since the late 1980s, Austrian winemaking has taken a steady meticulous approach to quality control, and confront once again their traditional organic viticulture practices.
Deservedly famous for its white wines, such as Grüner Veltliners especially. Austria makes a number of delicious red wines as well, such as this exhilarating Pinot Noir.
Set in the middle of the World Heritage Site of the National Park Neusiedlersee, on the Eastern side of the Neusiedlersee Lake, bordering directly on the Hungarian lowlands, is the Meinklang estate farm: Mein means “my” and Klang means “sound”.
What’s on the label?
The label is inspired by the herd of cows that contributes an essential way for their natural fertilizer. It is a working farm and biodynamic practices contribute to the farm’s diversity.
The healthy growth of grapevines is enriched by ancient grains such as spelled, farro, and einkorn wheat, as well as the fruit orchards and vegetable gardens, meadows of wild herbs and flowers that scatter the farm.
The same unadulterated process applied on the farm is transferred to the cellar too. There is minimal intervention, with the use of indigenous yeasts, and malolactic conversions are allowed to occur naturally.
What is Malolactic fermentation?
Malolactic fermentation is a process in winemaking in which tart-tasting malic acid, naturally present in grape must, is converted to softer tasting lactic acid.
The wines are precisely aged in either stainless steel, used barrels, or concrete eggs so that the wines impart a pure expression. Once the wines are finished fermenting there is no filter or fining. I compliment winemakers who don’t use this practice as usually it strips the wine of its character.
My tasting Notes
This wine displays a medium ruby with a pink rim. On the nose, it’s a bounty of fresh red cherries, strawberries, wild blueberries, followed by flowers, sweet baking spices, and potting soil as well as a touch of dusty oak. On the palate it’s dry with a medium+ spitz acid, medium alcohol, medium- body, medium-soft tannin grip juicy texture medium + intensity of tart fresh mix field red berries, cranberries, a dose of blueberries, heightened with red licorice, perfumed with vanilla bean and cherry blossoms, it closes with a long finish.
My Conclusion
This is a good wine. The focus here is a generous portion of tart red fruit. The balance is restrained by its alcohol combined with vibrant acid. It’s a mouthful on the mid-palate and the bounty of fruit just continues long after the finish. I would not cellar as the style suggests a clean statement and transparency of the body and sensory components. Some would think carbonic maceration was used for its ferments. However, there is a dusty earthy element that reverses that thought. It’s pretty and raw at the same time. As quoted will sum up this wine.
“The noblest form of agriculture is one that maintains its own fertility and therefore also becomes self-sufficient. This is a high ideal and a life task which must be considered on every level.” -Angela Michlits-
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