2019 Franz Strohmeier, TLZ Indigo 5, Steiermark, Austria

This deep, ink-blue red is one of Franzs top wines, made with old Blauer Wildbacher vines in the best vintages. Just like the color whose name it carries, this wine is deep and intriguing; it also ages gracefully, so the patient among us will be greatly rewarded.

Varieties: Blauer Wildbacher

Vineyard: Lestein. Steep slope on Gneiss with loamy topsoil and important iron contet, close to Franzs house. Vines planted in the 1980s by his father, one-wire trained.

Making of: the grapes are hand-harvested, with a careful selection of only the ripe and healthy grapes. The crushed grapes then spend 4 weeks on skins, going through the spontaneous primary fermentation. After soft pressing, the wine spends 24 months in used 500-liter and smaller wooden barrels. Unfined, unfiltered, no sulfur added.