At the centre of the Blaufränkisch universe

Terroir and landscapes in Burgenland

01 Apr, 22

of Alexander Lupersböck in special

The grape variety is cultivated in many regions of Europe. But hardly anywhere else does it have such a strong significance as in , the easternmost province of Austria. In all the growing areas of the region, the position of the variety is undisputed. Otherwise there are clear differences.

Lake Neusiedl and the Leitha Mountains

The north of the province of Burgenland is dominated by Lake Neusiedl. On its western shore lies the Leithaberg, a mountain range that shields the region from the cool and humid currents of the Alpine-Atlantic climate.

The winemaking couple Gernot and Heike Heinrich from Gols is representative of many who have migrated from the gentle slopes north of Lake Neusiedl towards the Leithaberg: "Starting in 2006, we leased vineyards there, and today two thirds of our vineyards are on the west side of the lake. We are very fond of the slate and limestone soils because they make a different style of wine possible. Especially the Blaufränkisch likes these soils."

Heinrich, who produces about 50 per cent Blaufränkisch in the biodynamic winery, sees it as the "most exciting red wine variety we have". He emphasises that excellent Blaufränkisch can also grow in the sites near Gols, as many of his colleagues prove. But he also loves the Leithaberg because of its microclimatic differences. "The sites face east or southeast, which means they don't get evening sun. That leads to different aromas. In the final phase of ripening, this is good for Blaufränkisch. The forest on the Leithagebirge does the rest, you feel a distinct cooling in the evening. And the diversity of the landscape is often compared to Burgundy in terms of topography."

Altenberg is almost a monopollage of the Heinrichs. Edelgraben in Breitenbrunn is dominated by slate and was planted in 2008. "On this stony soil I never have young plants growing too fast. So they show terroir character early on. We sometimes harvest only 1,500 kilos from the 6,000 vines per hectare. Each berry weighs only a few grams and has a thick skin. If you don't work gently, the later wine will contain too many tannins. It is important to give the wines time and not to drink them too early. That way you can get more complexity and enjoyment out of it."

Mittelburgenland and Rosalia

The Rosalien Mountains rise up to 750 metres above sea level along the Lower Austria-Burgenland border. The loess and brown earth soils combined with the Pannonian climate make Blaufränkisch the main variety here.

Mittelburgenland is also known as "Blaufränkischland". It is enclosed like an amphitheatre by three mountain ranges and is only open to the west. Nevertheless, the Pannonian climate influence dominates on the predominantly loamy soils. These store moisture well and protect the vines in hot summers. Best conditions for the grape variety, which predominates here with almost 55 percent.

From Deutschkreutz and Neckenmarkt, two of the important towns in the area, it is only a few kilometres as the crow flies to the southern shore of Lake Neusiedl. A particularly beautiful view of it is offered from the Neckenmarkt Hochberg, over which the border to Hungary runs. Deer often enjoy this view, as Georg Wieder from the Juliana Wieder vineyard explains: "In spring they eat the young shoots, in autumn the ripe grapes. Deer, wild boar and birds also like to roam there, so we have to net our vineyards."

Late frosts and increased hailstorms also pose a threat to viticulture. Dry phases are a problem especially for the vineyards on the Neckenmarkt Hochberg, where the mica schist, orthogneiss and shell limestone soils can hardly store any water. On the other hand, this diversity of soils allows for a wide spectrum of Blaufränkisch wines: delicate, finesse-rich, elegant, mineral or also powerful-spicy and salty. For Georg Wieder, an ideal Blaufränkisch from Neckenmarkt is "fruity-spicy, with minerality and structure; ripe tannins, fine acid structure and tannins should be in balance. It is important that the wine unfolds its presence and the wooden barrel only supports in the background".

Eisenberg

The soils at the eponymous Eisenberg in southern Burgenland are indeed characterised by ferruginous loam and slate, which gives the wines a unique spiciness. The small-structured viticulture in Austria's smallest wine-growing region - with 500 hectares of vineyards even less than Vienna - and the location away from the major traffic routes and centres led to its marketing as a "wine idyll". Yet much has been done in recent years to arouse tourists' curiosity: Nice hotels and excellent restaurants attract more and more interested people. Blaufränkisch actually only plays the main role in the two neighbouring villages Eisenberg an der Pinka and Deutsch-Schützen, otherwise white varieties often still dominate.

Not least thanks to the efforts of Hermann Krutzler in the 1970s and 1980s, the area formerly known as Südburgenland became more and more associated with Blaufränkisch. His son Reinhold Krutzler is one of the protagonists on the Eisenberg. As in Mittelburgenland, hail, late frosts and drought are the biggest challenges for him on the Eisenberg. Blaufränkisch is his variety of choice: "Our soil characterises it: green and blue slate, iron-rich medium-heavy loam. The variety can handle this particularly well and produces elegant, fine wines with a certain spiciness. When working with wood, it must never mask the character of the grape variety, as was the case 20 years ago. At that time, the focus was on alcohol, colour and a powerful body. It's much more important for us today to focus on the grape variety and the unique soils here at Eisenberg."

The best currently tasted Blaufränkisch from Burgenland

Weingut Ernst Triebaumer — Burgenland 2019 Ried Mariental Blaufränkisch trocken 57.50 €

Weingut Moric — Burgenland 2016 Lutzmannsburg Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken Alte Reben 74.50 €

schiefer pur — Burgenland 2015 Süd-Burgenland Ried Reihburg Blaufränkisch trocken "r2" 96 WP great 82.00 €

schiefer pur — Burgenland 2018 Ried Königsberg Blaufränkisch trocken "Alte Weingärten" 94 WP excellent 48.00 €

Weingut Krutzler — Burgenland 2019 Blaufränkisch trocken "Perwolff" 95 WP great 47.00 €

Weingut Heinrich GmbH - Gernot und Heike Heinrich — Burgenland 2017 Leithaberg DAC Ried Alter Berg Blaufränkisch trocken 94 WP excellent 50.00 €

Weingut Krutzler — Burgenland 2017 Eisenberg DAC Ried Weinberg Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 94 WP excellent 45.00 €

schiefer pur — Burgenland 2017 Süd-Burgenland Ried Reihburg Blaufränkisch trocken 94 WP excellent 58.00 €

Weingut Silvia Heinrich — Burgenland 2017 trocken "Cupido" 63.00 €

Weingut Moric — Burgenland 2018 Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 32.50 €

Weingut Wachter-Wiesler — Burgenland 2018 Eisenberg DAC Ried Reihburg Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 49.90 €

Weingut Familie Prieler — Burgenland 2018 Leithaberg DAC Ried Goldberg Blaufränkisch trocken 93 WP excellent 59.00 €

Anita und Hans Nittnaus — Burgenland 2018 Leithaberg DAC Ried Gritschenberg Blaufränkisch trocken 93 WP excellent 54.00 €

Weingut Umathum — Burgenland 2015 Ried Kirchberg Blaufränkisch trocken 42.50 €

Weingut Heinrich GmbH - Gernot und Heike Heinrich — Burgenland 2017 Leithaberg DAC Ried Edelgraben Blaufränkisch trocken 93 WP excellent 50.00 €

schiefer pur — Burgenland 2017 Blaufränkisch trocken "Lutzmannsburg V.V." 93 WP excellent 48.00 €

schiefer pur — Burgenland 2015 Eisenberg DAC Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 93 WP excellent 52.00 €

Weingut Silvia Heinrich — Burgenland 2017 Blaufränkisch trocken Alte Reben 55.00 €

Weingut Familie Strehn — Burgenland 2018 Blaufränkisch trocken "Roter Schotter" 23.00 €

Weingut Wachter-Wiesler — Burgenland 2018 Eisenberg DAC Ried Saybritz Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 49.90 €

Weingut Lichtenberger & Gonzales — Burgenland 2018 Ried Vorderberg trocken 51.90 €

Weingut Familie Prieler — Burgenland 2018 Leithaberg DAC Ried Marienthal Blaufränkisch trocken 92 WP excellent 56.00 €

Paul Kerschbaum — Burgenland 2019 Mittelburgenland Ried Dürrau Blaufränkisch trocken 23.50 €

Weingut Tesch — Burgenland 2015 Blaufränkisch trocken "Patriot" 67.00 €

Hammer Wein Rust - Mag. Markus Hammer — Burgenland 2015 Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken "Rusterberg" 92 WP excellent 30.00 €

Anita und Hans Nittnaus — Burgenland 2018 Leithaberg DAC Ried Jungenberg Blaufränkisch trocken 92 WP excellent 54.00 €

Weingut Tinhof — Burgenland 2018 Ried Kirchberg Blaufränkisch trocken "Gloriette®" 48.00 €

Weingut Hans Igler — Burgenland 2014 Blaufränkisch trocken C11 92 WP excellent 33.00 €

Weingut Juris — Burgenland 2017 Ried Ungerberg Blaufränkisch trocken 33.00 €

Weingut Umathum — Burgenland 2016 Ried Kirschgarten Blaufränkisch trocken 42.50 €

schiefer pur — Burgenland 2016 Ried Szapary Blaufränkisch trocken "s" 92 WP excellent 36.00 €

Heribert Bayer - Kellerei In Signo Leonis GmbH — Burgenland 2018 trocken "In Signo Sagittarii" 92 WP excellent 31.60 €

Weingut Krutzler — Burgenland 2018 Blaufränkisch trocken "Perwolff" 92 WP excellent 45.00 €

Weingut Jalits — Burgenland 2018 Eisenberg DAC Ried Fasching Reserve trocken 22.00 €

Weinbau Straka — Burgenland 2017 Eisenberg DAC Ried Prantner Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 35.50 €

Reumann Josef und Maria — Burgenland 2019 Mittelburgenland DAC Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken Altes Weingebirge 91 WP excellent 42.00 €

Weingut Günter Triebaumer — Burgenland 2019 Ried Plachen Blaufränkisch trocken 43.00 €

wein.gut wellanschitz — Burgenland 2019 Blaufränkisch trocken "WELL" Alte Reben 32.00 €

Brigitte und Gerhard Pittnauer — Burgenland 2019 Ried Ungerberg Blaufränkisch trocken 34.00 €

Weingut Juliana Wieder — Burgenland 2015 Mittelburgenland DAC Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 91 WP excellent 38.90 €

Brigitte und Gerhard Pittnauer — Burgenland 2018 Ried Ungerberg Blaufränkisch trocken 34.00 €

Weingut Esterhazy — Burgenland 2017 Leithaberg DAC Ried Schildten Blaufränkisch trocken 91 WP excellent 34.00 €

Weingut Tesch — Burgenland 2017 Blaufränkisch trocken "Patriot" 67.00 €

Weingut Gesellmann — Burgenland 2018 Mittelburgenland Blaufränkisch trocken "hochberc®" 37.80 €

Weingut Leitner — Burgenland 2016 Ried Ungerberg Blaufränkisch trocken 30.00 €

Weingut Giefing — Burgenland 2017 Ried Oberer Wald Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 34.00 €

Weingut Iby-Lehrner — Burgenland 2017 Ried Dürrau Blaufränkisch trocken 31.00 €

Weine Thom Wachter — Burgenland 2018 Eisenberg DAC Ried Fasching Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 22.00 €

Weine Thom Wachter — Burgenland 2019 Eisenberg DAC Ried Königsberg Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 28.00 €

Weingut Tinhof — Burgenland 2017 Blaufränkisch trocken "Gloriette" 48.00 €

Weingut Grenzhof, Bernhard Fiedler — Burgenland 2019 Leithaberg DAC Ried Goldberg trocken 18.00 €

Bioweingut Moritz (Rotweinbau Moritz) — Burgenland 2018 Blaufränkisch trocken "NIX" 91 WP excellent 33.00 €

Weingut Paul Achs — Burgenland 2016 Ried Ungerberg Blaufränkisch trocken 42.00 €

Weingut Jalits — Burgenland 2018 Eisenberg DAC Ried Szapáry Reserve trocken 14.50 €

Weingut Ernst Triebaumer — Burgenland 2019 Ried Oberer Wald Blaufränkisch trocken 28.90 €

Weingut Wachter-Wiesler — Burgenland 2018 Eisenberg DAC Ried Weinberg Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 32.50 €

Weingut Hans Igler — Burgenland 2011 Mittelburgenland DAC Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken "Biiri" 90 WP excellent 23.00 €

Anita und Hans Nittnaus — Burgenland 2019 Leithaberg DAC Ried Lange Ohn Blaufränkisch trocken 90 WP excellent 25.00 €

Weingut K+K Walter und Irmgard Kirnbauer — Burgenland 2019 Mittelburgenland DAC Deutschkreutz Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken "Gold Reserve" 21.00 €

Weingut Franz Schindler — Burgenland 2019 Leithaberg Ried Lehmgrube Blaufränkisch trocken 23.00 €

Grenzlandhof Reumann — Burgenland 2018 Mittelburgenland DAC Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 32.00 €

Weinbau Kopfensteiner — Burgenland 2018 Eisenberg DAC Ried Saybritz Reserve trocken 28.00 €

Weingut Juliana Wieder — Burgenland 2018 Mittelburgenland DAC Ried Bodigraben Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 90 WP excellent Up to 19.90 €

Weingut Tinhof — Burgenland 2018 Leithaberg DAC Ried Setz Blaufränkisch trocken 38.00 €

StephanO DAS-WEIN-GUT — Burgenland 2017 Eisenberg DAC Ried Fasching Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 28.00 €

Weingut Josef und Melitta Igler — Burgenland 2017 trocken "Joe N°1" 33.00 €

Reumann Josef und Maria — Burgenland 2017 Mittelburgenland DAC Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 90 WP excellent 42.00 €

Rotweine Lang — Burgenland 2017 trocken Grande Reserve, "V-Max" 38.00 €

Rotweingut Prickler — Burgenland 2018 Mittelburgenland Blaufränkisch trocken Grande Reserve "V-MAX" 39.00 €

Weingut Sommer — Burgenland 2017 Leithaberg DAC Ried Halser Blaufränkisch trocken 90 WP excellent 28.00 €

Weine Thom Wachter — Burgenland 2018 Eisenberg DAC Ried Saybritz Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 22.00 €

Weine Thom Wachter — Burgenland 2019 Eisenberg DAC Ried Szapáry Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken "alter garten" 28.00 €

Weingut Krutzler — Burgenland 2019 Süd-Burgenland Ried Weinberg trocken "Alter Weingarten" 90 WP excellent 29.00 €

Weingut Kollwentz — Burgenland 2017 Ried Point trocken 51.00 €

schiefer pur — Burgenland 2018 Ried Königsberg Blaufränkisch trocken 90 WP excellent 18.00 €

Weingut Krutzler — Burgenland 2018 Eisenberg DAC Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 90 WP excellent 19.50 €

Bioweingut Moritz (Rotweinbau Moritz) — Burgenland 2019 Mittelburgenland DAC Ried Hochäcker Blaufränkisch trocken "Handmade" 90 WP excellent 26.00 €

Weingut Juliana Wieder — Burgenland 2011 Mittelburgenland DAC Blaufränkisch Reserve trocken 90 WP excellent Up to 35.50 €

All wines

Photos: © OEWM WSNA, © Weingut G u.H Heinrich, © R Klaus Gaggl, © Weingut Juliana Wieder, © Egon-Mark , © Weingut Krutzler

Previous article Next article

	100 WP unique Wines that can only be made differently, but not better.
	95-99 WP great World-class wines whose depth, complexity, character and expressiveness give an unforgettable, sensual experience.
	90-94 WP excellent First class wines that are among the best of their kind. They are characterized by purity, harmony, depth and character.
	85-89 WP very good Remarkable wines with personality, expression, as well as a certain complexity and depth. They deserve every wine lover's attention.
	80-84 WP good Clean, harmonious, at best typical wines.
	75-79 WP passable
	70-74 WP schwach
	60-69 WP insufficient
	50-59 WP unacceptable

	Unlimited access to wine knowledge: Over 150,000 independent wine reviews, the world's largest wine encyclopaedia and extensive specialist articles in wein.plus magazine.
	eBook wein.plus magazine
	Exclusive purchase discounts: Benefit from attractive offers and discounts from our partners - exclusively for Premium members.
	Ad-free reading experience: Enjoy all content without adverts or tracking.

	Maximum visibility: Present your wines and your company to over 200,000 wine lovers and professionals from the catering and retail sectors - with pinpoint accuracy and without wastage.
	More sales through find+buy: Increase your online sales with direct purchase links to your wines on Europe's largest wine platform.
	Valuable business benefits: Benefit from business framework agreements, save money on services and partner offers and use exclusive services such as free bottle photos and marketing seals.
	eBook wein.plus magazine

You can also use our powerful search function with many flexible filters, such as:

Wine tastings

Wine producers

Wine regions

find+buy wine search engine

Business directory wine

Places

Lexicon

News & stories

Events

At the centre of the Blaufränkisch universe

Terroir and landscapes in Burgenland

Lake Neusiedl and the Leitha Mountains

Mittelburgenland and Rosalia

Eisenberg

More on the topic:

The best currently tasted Blaufränkisch from Burgenland

Related Magazine Articles

EVENTS NEAR YOU

100 WP unique

95-99 WP great

90-94 WP excellent

85-89 WP very good

80-84 WP good

75-79 WP passable

70-74 WP schwach

60-69 WP insufficient

50-59 WP unacceptable

Welcome back!

You can also use our powerful search function with many flexible filters, such as:

Wine tastings

Wine producers

Wine regions

find+buy wine search engine

Business directory wine

Places

Lexicon

News & stories

Events

At the centre of the Blaufränkisch universe

Terroir and landscapes in Burgenland

Lake Neusiedl and the Leitha Mountains

Mittelburgenland and Rosalia

Eisenberg

More on the topic:

The best currently tasted Blaufränkisch from Burgenland

Related Magazine Articles

EVENTS NEAR YOU

wein.plus

Your approval is required – if you are not a Premium Member

Read with advertising

Consent:

... or become a Premium Member

Enjoy wein.plus without advertising and tracking by third parties!

Our Private Premium Membership offers you:

Our Business Premium membership offers you:

Your approval is required –
if you are not a Premium Member