Zweigelt, Blaufränkisch and St. Laurent are the red wine varieties with which Austria is currently celebrating its greatest successes. In the country's red cuvées, Zweigelt in particular is omnipresent, which also proves time and again to be an ideal blending partner for the French varieties that have been immigrants for a long time - above all Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, but also Syrah, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Franc.
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Barrel cellar in Burgenland (Photo: ÖWM / Armin Faber) |
Even though the soloists among Austrian red wines now receive the greater attention, the country's cuvées can still be great and easily rival top international wines. This is all the more true as the wines today are much more elegant and less woody across the board than they were just a few years ago. The rather interchangeable, thick, chocolaty, jammy wines are clearly on the retreat and are making way for much more independent and exciting wines.