Pinot Noir – 2023

Pinot Noir from Weingut Gernot Heinrich with a cool tension

Pinot Noir from Gernot Heinrich is a light red wine from Burgenland that spends two weeks on the skins, gaining tension in the process. This is not a broad, sweet Pinot Noir, but a vibrant wine with red-berry fruit, herbal spice, and firm acidity.

Pinot Noir is the young red from the Weingut Gernot Heinrich in Gols, in Austria's Burgenland region, grown in the vineyards around Lake Neusiedl. Limestone-rich soils on the Leithaberg hills near the edge of the forest provide coolness, while the sunny southeastern edge of the Parndorfer Platte contributes gravelly-sandy loam soils and, with them, ripeness. At 12.0 percent alcohol, the 2023 vintage remains lean in structure.

Red-berry fruit and a cool core

In the glass sits a light, translucent red wine whose slender stature is evident long before it reaches the palate. The color barely reaches a dark red, and for this variety, that is not a flaw but its essence.

The aroma opens with restraint, bringing red berries, meadow herbs, and the bitter freshness of orange zest. A vibrant acidity flows through the wine on the palate, while the tannins remain gentle. It is precisely this balance that gives it the cool core that sets it apart from the estate's warmer red wines.

It should be served at cellar temperature, definitely not warm, because the warmth masks the delicate herbal notes and makes the wine appear broader than it is built. Half an hour in a carafe won't hurt it, but this young vintage doesn't need more than that.

Early harvest and long skin contact

Harvesting is done by hand, as early as the beginning of September 2023, to ensure the acidity in the must is preserved and the wine maintains its cool tension. Early September is an early date for a red wine, and it plays a decisive role in how much freshness ends up in the bottle.

Afterward, the grapes spend two weeks on the skins in wooden fermentation vats, twice as long as the previous year. This longer maceration time provides the slightly firmer tannins that give the vintage its structure. The berries only go into the basket press afterward, and fermentation begins spontaneously.

The wine subsequently matures for seven months in wooden fermentation vats on its natural lees, where no new barrel wood interferes. It was bottled at the beginning of May 2024, grown in vineyards managed according to organic-biological and biodynamic principles.

Between roast veal and goat cheese

Roast veal with a light sauce is a perfect match for this red wine because its acidity loosens up the sauce and its tannins do not overpower the meat. Furthermore, despite its delicacy, the wine brings enough tannins to stand alongside roasted meat without disappearing.

Braised beetroot complements the earthy side of the wine, and fresh young goat cheese provides a salty edge against which the fruit can work. If you spread the wine over two evenings, you will find it even calmer and rounder on the second day.

How the wine turned out a year prior is shown by the Pinot Noir 2022, which turned out even more delicate after a shorter maceration period. If you are looking for something darker at the same weight, the path leads to the Zweigelt with its juicy cherry fruit. All other bottles from the estate can be found in the Red Wine section and under Weingut Gernot Heinrich.

Pinot Noir – a wine and its values

• Origin Wine from Austria
• Region Burgenland
• Grape Variety Pinot Noir
• 12.0% Vol. Alcohol
• 5.2 g/l Acidity
• 1.0 g/l Residual Sugar

Organic inspection body AT-BIO-402 – Austrian Agriculture