Felsen II rot 2019 - Christian Tschida (fin nature)

Felsen II (100% Syrah) is only made in the best years and what a wine Felsen II 2019 is! Super delicate and resembles a good northern Rhône rather than a sturdy Shiraz. With rich aromas of blueberries, black olives, black pepper and soft spices. The wine has been aged for 1 year in an (old) wooden barrel of 1000 liters and is very delicate, refined, slightly spicy and has a lot of tension and layers. The wine is young but already shows its potential and is very beautiful. Preferably (at least) decant 3 hours in advance. Amazing natural wine from Chris!

• Country / Region: Austria / Neusiedlersee (Burgenland)
• Grape variety(ies): Syrah
• In the vineyard: Grapes harvested by hand. Limestone, slate and gravel subsoil. 30 year old vines. Vines between 115-240 meters altitude. Biodynamic farming.
• In the wine cellar: Grapes lightly crushed with the feet, slow, spontaneous fermentation. Free-run 'pressing'. 1 year maturation in an (old) wooden barrel of 1000 liters. Unfiltered. Without addition of sulfite
• Quality mark: Biodynamic and Vin Nature
• Goes well with: Veal, sweetbreads, BBQ, boudin noir, light game meat, partridge, hare stew, wild boar stew, ratatouille

Christian Tschida is one of the biggest rock stars in Vin Nature at the moment. Restaurant Noma in Copenhagen has been serving Tschida wines in its wine pairings for years. Even now with the huge increase in high-end restaurants and the increasing supply of high-quality natural wines, Tschida remains number one. Because many natural wine lovers see Christian Tschida as a kind of demigod, his cult status is only growing. Even sommeliers in Austria have to make an effort for his wines.

The most remarkable thing about Tschida is that he uses 30% of the 'free run'. This gives his wines a particularly elegant character, very pure and sometimes even light.

The Tschida family has been making wine in Illmitz (Neusiedlersee) since the 19th century and Christian still works some of these old family vineyards. When Christian took over the family estate in 2003, many former customers found his way of making wine ridiculous. Low in alcohol and too high in minerality and juiciness. Fortunately, his wine was selected by a large local bank, who served it at their stylish business lunches. Funny enough, only because they didn't want the executives to get drunk. Funny or not, Tschida is now part of the canon of vin nature, not only in Austria, but throughout the Western Hemisphere.