A few weeks ago I was invited to join a #winechat about Austrian red wines. For those who don’t know, #winechat is an organized Twitter event where a group of folks jump onto Twitter to chat about wine. Often times those participating all taste the same wines and that was the case on this evening when we tasted both a zweigelt and a blaufränkisch. Both wines were good, but I was particularly fond of the blaufränkisch and it reminded me of my appreciation for the variety.
Blaufränkisch, or blue franc, is a wine that has everything I love from a wine when it’s well made. It has a complex spiciness, rich berry flavors harmoniously intertwined with earthy qualities, good structure, good acidity and an elegant mouthfeel. And it’s a fun wine, which is something that I think is sometimes overlooked with wine.
But it’s also a wine that has a few different faces, depending on where it’s grown and the winemaking techniques used. Of course in Austria one can expect to find systems designed to ensure precision and wine is no exception to that rule. They have created a DAC system to designate specific regions and production guidelines within those regions in order to create consistency. This wine from Iby, however, is not labeled as a DAC wine. I was provided with a tech sheet on this wine that says it’s Mittelburgenland DAC, but there’s nothing on the bottle to state that. When I asked about that I was told that it was “streamlined labeling for lower tier wines” but I’m not sure what they mean by that. Regardless, DAC is just a classification and it’s the taste that matters most. In that area, this wine delivers.
Appropriately, this blaufränkisch smells ummmm…. blue. Like blue violets that is. It’s very floral on the nose and, dare I say, delightful. The floral aromatics are backed up with spicy berries. In the mouth, it’s a nice, medium-bodied wine, offering raspberry, white pepper and plum flavors. It has a touch of tannin, giving some texture to the mouthfeel. The finish is medium in length with berry, mushroom and salty mineral flavors. This is a very fun wine.
For more thoughts on blaufräkisch, check out Exlporing Blaufränkisch in Burgenland.
Wine: Iby Classic Blaufrankisch
Variety: Blaufrankisch
Vintage: 2010
Alcohol: 13%
Rating: 87
Price: $17.99
Find Iby Classic Blaufrankisch with Snooth
Disclosure: This wine was received as a media sample.