Markus Altenburger Blaufränkisch Vom Kalk 2021
  • Blaufränkisch
  • Biodynamic, Natural, Organic
  • Dry
  • Light Bodied
  • 750ml
  • 12.5% alc./vol

Markus Altenburger Blaufränkisch Vom Kalk 2021

Burgenland, Austria
$28.95per bottle ($347.40per case)
12 bottles per case
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Bright & Lush

The Altenburger family has farmed land in and around Jois since the 16th century. Their vineyards are only half an hour from Vienna, but seemingly in another cosmos altogether.

Grown on calcareous loam, the Blaufränkisch Vom Kalk is down-to-earth: fruity without being too superficial, persistent without being too demanding. The wine is produced without the help of technical or chemical tools, spontaneous fermented on the must, and matured primarily in large old wooden barrels.

It is the house wine, the neighbourhood wine, the friendship wine – one that everybody wants to pour in the glass – a perfect meal companion or to be enjoyed solo with a good conversations and silent thoughts. 

High-toned, bright, black cherry in the nose leading to a nice density despite its slight frame. Lushly-fruited and filled with tart fruit skin, cherry pit bitterness, ginger spice, and saline, pungent, and chalky mineral nuances.

About the Winery

Markus Altenburger

The Altenburger family has farmed land in and around Jois since the 16th century. Their vineyards are only half an hour from Vienna, but seemingly in another cosmos altogether. 

Markus is fascinated by Blaufränkisch – the red grape of Burgenland. He works with massal selections from his Gritschenberg vineyard's old vines. There, loose clusters and small berries are well adapted to the dry Pannonian summers. The grapes express the schist for fruiter wines charming in their youth, as well as the limestone, for length and structure. The wines express this tension, the influences of limestone and schist soils, and something of the wild abundance of nature, as well.

Since Markus took over his family’s estate more than a decade ago, he’s moved from what he calls “well-behaved wines” to those that are much closer to nature and bear a far more personal stamp. In the cellar, he favours native yeasts, minimal added sulphur, long, protective lees contact, and concrete and neutral wood for ageing. 

Press Reviews

Wine Align

92 points - Sarah d'Amato

An aromatically engaging blaufränkish brimming with botanicals, mineral and ripe red fruit. Pepper, graphite and refreshing acidity liven the palate. Elegant but spirited with great depth of flavour and an appealing crunchiness. Youthful yet ready to drink with a memorably salty finish. Best now to 2026. Tasted August 2023.

91 points - Michael Godel

Biodynamically farmed blaufränkisch and from the Altenburger who have been present in this land so near to Vienna since the 16th century. The soils are calcareous loam and the wine may be natural though it is anything but sweetly, peaty or sweaty funky. The vintage has surely determined great ripeness and the sour-edgy acidity is in total command. This may just be a quintessential Austrian food wine with a cool Leithaberg breeze that looks for warm broth, soft dumplings and preferably braised meat. Will age for a few years without turning. Drink 2023-2026. Tasted August 2023.

91 points - David Lawrason

This is a fairly deeply coloured and ripe blaufrankisch that shows a rich nose of raspberry/plum with well integrated violet and spice. Very appealing aromas if not intense. It is medium weight with lively, almost juicy acidity, some alcohol warmth (12.5%) and fine but gritty tannin. The length is excellent. I would age it a couple of years although I like its exuberance now as well. Tasted Sept 2023