Werlitsch Glück 2019

Weingut Werlitsch lies in Südsteiermark, southern Styria, where Ewald and Brigitte Tscheppe farm biodynamically and bottle this Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc only when the fruit reaches the standard they want. The steep Styrian slopes, with their distinctive Opok marl of limestone and sandstone, and a cool climate with marked day-to-night temperature swings, give ripe but firmly acidic grapes, which is essential for a wine built to spend so long on its skins. Maceration runs up to seven weeks, so the healthy fruit matters, drawing deep colour, phenolics and tannin from the skins. Twenty-four months in large old foudres then softens the texture through slow oxygen exchange and adds an oxidative, nutty layer. The colour is deep amber. The nose shows apricot and orange peel, dried herbs, hazelnut and beeswax, with an earthy undertow. The palate is dry, broad and savoury, the long skin contact giving real tannic grip and a stony, persistent finish. Serve at 12 to 14 degrees in a large glass, decanting to let it stretch out.