Barbara is based in the village of Zbing, just north of the Kamptals regional centre of Langenlois. She farms 6-7ha in various small, choice locations within some of the regions most famous Erste Lagen vineyards. Her vineyards are typically planted very densely and are either inaccessible or unworkable by Tractors or other mechanical devices so the work is very largely by hand.

Kamptal is famous for producing some of Austrias bigger, more robust wines and producers like Loimer, Brundlemayer and Hiedler are rightly famous for their broad, generously flavoured and full textured wines. Received wisdom says that these warm slopes above the river Kamp and the deep, predominantly Loess soils inevitably produce these rich wines. Barbera, very quietly but quite deliberately disproves the theory and is making some of the regions most clearly and cleanly delineated wines; precise, linear and excitingly intense wines that seem both scarily serious and madly joyful at the same time. Like listening to Rik Mayall explain the meaning of life on Jackanory !

They are deep, they are persistent, theres a sense of everything being very deliberately hmm not controlled but definitely properly considered. The acidity is always mouthwatering but stays resolutely the right side of sharp. Alcohols sit around 13.5 and theres no shortage of flavour or ripeness and yet theres never a hint of excess either. The wines are tense and precise but never in the slightest forbidding. You end up starting with Lithe in the thesaurus when you run out of different ways of describing them.

Weingut Barbara hlzeltis certified Sustainable Austria since 2022. Sustainable Austria is a project undertaken by the Austrian Winegrowers Association. It assesses some 360 measures in nine sustainability fields of climate, materials, energy, soil, biodiversity, water, quality, social factors and economic factors. External auditing companies ensure independent adherence to the criteria. Each year, the requirements for earning certification become more stringent and new scientific findings are adopted.

Vinification

40% Gruner Veltliner, 40% Roter Veltliner, 10% Pinot Blanc, 10% Gruner Sylvaner.

Gut Gegen is a Gemischter Satz so the constituent varieties in this case predominantly Gruner and Roter Veltliner, a little Pinot Blanc and a small addition of Gruner Sylvaner are grown together in the same vineyard, harvested on the same day and co-fermented (natural yeast) in stainless steel. Selection is rigorous and very much helped by what is effectively a late green harvest when Barbara takes a pre harvest for the production of Verjus. Pressing is super gentle, never more than 1 bar and only whole grape pressing, never pre-mashed grapes. After initial fermentation the wine stays on fine lees for a few months before transfer to old Acacia barrels for a further short stay before bottling.

Tasting Notes

Heres a wine thats speaks very well for itself. A truly lovely and wonderfully inviting nose of dry honey, warm butter and maybe soft, ripe gooseberries gets things off to a flying start. Its a Gemischter Satz so its about place at least as much as it is about fruit, and this particular wines strikes us as being about shape, texture and movement as much as it is about flavour too. The opening baby plumpness gives way to a lovely gentle spiciness in the middle whilst a delicious, almost urgent acidity combines with an appetising touch of bitterness at the finish. Thinking about quite decent class white Burgundy seems helpful on the one hand and distracting on the other, the general shape is close, but this is very much capable of standing on its own two feet and being judged for what it is without comparison. Its heart is dense and properly sleek with that exciting blend of fruitiness and stoniness that characterises so many genuinely serious wines. Attractively undemanding yet at the same time properly smart. Lovely. A great starting point for your Barbara hlzelt journey.

Fresh, crushed peas with a suggestion of mint and some ricotta served on toast. Cant see a nice herb stuffed wild Sea Bass being much of a problem here either!