naked red – non-vintage

naked red from the Gernot Heinrich winery in Gols

naked red from Gernot Heinrich is a non-vintage organic red wine cuvée made from Zweigelt, Blaufränkisch, and St. Laurent, spontaneously fermented and aged in wood. It is not a heavy, barrique-aged red wine, but rather a leanly structured red with bright cherry notes, peppery spice, and softly integrated tannins.

naked red is the everyday red wine from the Gernot Heinrich winery in Gols, in Austria's Burgenland region, pressed from Zweigelt, Blaufränkisch, and St. Laurent. The vines are spread across both shores of the lake, from the slate of the Leithaberg hills to the gravel of the Parndorfer Platte and the humus-rich heath soil of the plains. The 12.5 percent alcohol content keeps it in an everyday format.

Bright cherry and peppery spice

Twist off the screw cap, and you are immediately greeted by bright cherry in the glass, followed by a peppery spice that thoroughly strips this wine of any sense of complacency.

Underneath lies a juiciness that doesn't dry out the mouth, and tannins that are so softly integrated that they provide support rather than resistance. Zweigelt brings the bright fruit, Blaufränkisch the spice, and St. Laurent the velvety flow. The texture remains lean, the wine never pushes itself forward, and that is precisely where it derives its drinkability.

"Seriously uncomplicated" is how the winery describes this red, and it is hard to capture the essence more concisely. A wine for a Tuesday evening, then, that still doesn't feel out of place on a Sunday. It benefits from being lightly chilled because the fruit then stands out more clearly and the spice remains in the background, whereas at room temperature, it appears broader than suits it.

Weeks on the skins in wooden fermentation vats

The grapes are harvested by hand between the end of August and mid-September, a timeframe that is early for Burgenland red wine grapes and preserves their freshness.

The berries then remain on the skins for 14 days, partly in wooden fermentation vats and partly in steel tanks, before being gently pressed. During this time, the skins impart color and tannins to the must. Fermentation is spontaneous, without added cultured yeast, using only what is already present on the berries.

The wine is then aged for over a year in wooden fermentation vats before being bottled in December 2022. The wood provides air and rest rather than vanilla, which is why the fruit has remained as bright as it was when it arrived in the cellar. The label does not bear a vintage; the wine is sold as non-vintage. The vineyards are farmed organically, with a great deal of manual labor.

How to continue the evening

A pizza straight from the oven and pasta with a robust tomato sauce readily accept this red without further ado because it doesn't take anything away from their intensity.

Grilled items also pair well with it, as long as they aren't too heavily smoked, as the lean texture can only withstand smoke to a limited extent. Half an hour in the refrigerator is perfectly sufficient; nothing more is needed. 750 milliliters are quickly finished in a social setting, which is why a six-bottle case remains the safer choice.

In white, the same concept is called naked white 2023, translating those same hills and gravel plains into something brighter. If you are looking for more dark bottles from Gols, you will find them under red wine, and the entire range from the winery is available at Gernot Heinrich Winery.

naked red – an organic wine and its values

• Origin: Wine from Austria
• Growing region: Burgenland
• Grape varieties: Zweigelt, Blaufränkisch, St. Laurent
• vegan
• 12.5% ABV
• 6.3 g/l acidity
• 1.0 g/l residual sugar

Organic control body AT-BIO-402 – Austrian Agriculture