Gunter Triebaumerg, Blaufrankisch Reserve 2016

The Reserve is and assemblage of  grapes from 4 single vineyards; Ried Plachen (loess) and Ried Oberer Wald (loam on chalk), Ried Riegelband and upper Bandkraften at the heart of the vineyard. Manual harvesting takes place at the end of September in to small boxes. Destemming and fermentation in closed staineless steel tanks at a temperature of around 29C for 14 days followed by 4 days of post fermentation maceration with gentle pressing, MLF and then maturation in 300L oak barrels approx.

Stylistically the Triebaumer's made a move away from too dominant an oak feature in these wines and so since 2016 they’ve reduced percentage in oak to accentuate fruit. A move that has been well received by buyers and critics alike.

The Triebaumer family have resided in Rust for over 300 years! So you could say that winemaking is in current winemaker Günter’s DNA! Rust is a pretty town on the shores of Lake Neusiedl which oozes a genteel prosperity with old wineries and baroque mansions. It’s a magnet for tourists but also home to the Austrian Wine Academy. Unlike many of his contempories who directly followed in their father's footsteps into the vineyards and winery; Günter chose instead to learn more about winemaking in Stellenbosch, South Africa, for 10 years before taking over the family estate in 2003. Today he is also a guest lecturer at the Austrian Wine Academy. His wife Regina is the Ying to his Yang! Also from a winemaking family she chose a career path in wine sales and marketing, working in both the fledgling UK market and also in the USA. She is also passionate about wine education and was instrumental in setting up the Austrian Wine Academy and its international training programme.

They produce around 150k bottles from 25 hectares. Despite their production size the Triebaumer’s care a great deal about sustainable viticulture, their land and nature. They have complied with 25/26 regulations required for organic certification since 1971, when they also stopped using synthetic fertilisers, using only organic material where necessary.