Another product of my browsing the Buon Vino website. It’s red wine, from Austria, and so it got added to the cart. That’s all there is to the reason I’m trying it. No great mysteries, backstories, long lost loves, blustery nights, or any such stuff. Just me going ‘ooh…. That sounds interesting.’
The Kamptal Kollektiv aims to support smaller farmers, with nine different farmers taking part. So, social sustainability. That was something that drew me to the wine.
In the glass
Light, clear, ruby. Shiny when held up to the light. A hint of purple towards the rim. Held up to the light, it’s the sort that I want to fill a vial with, so I can hang it in the window and watch the light play off it. That is, when there’s sun. I live in England, after all.
The nose
Something reddish. Red currant, perhaps. Hint of a darker sort of cherry. Some part of my brain pipes up that there’s something Zweigelt-y about the nose. Whatever the truth may be, it has an attractive nose. Maybe it is just because it is clearer to me than so many others, but I like it. It’s not a deep, brooding nose, or one of a well-aged wine. But it’s attractive.
The palate
Light on the palate. First impression is almost thin. It’s more towards cherry on the palate than the nose was. It has a cherry-sort of mouthfeel, if that makes sense. It does to me, so you’ll have to deal with it. Light tannins. They’re there, but unobtrusive. It’s refreshing, with a hint of sourness that works well. Without it, it might be a bit cloying. It goes down smoothly, leading you on to take another drink and then another. (Repeat as necessary.)
Rating
Yummy-double-plus-good. overall, Very pretty on visuals.
This one took a bit of thinking about. I wasn’t sure if it should be Yummy-plus, or Yummy-double-plus-good. In the end, as you can read, I went for the latter. I had been arguing with myself – does a relatively simple, straightforward wine deserve such a rating? As opposed to some over-priced French or Italian wine? And yes, it should. As an example of what it is and aspires to, it’s definitely Yummy-double-plus-good.
Would probably work well slightly chilled. Great on its own. I then paired it with steak tartare. That worked, but probably didn’t really let the wine shine. I’d go for something a bit lighter foodwise next time.
Sustainability
Social elements of sustainability, under conversion to organic.
The technical info
12.5% ABV, Red blend, £17.95 from Buon Vino