Do you make an effort to buy organic food when you make your shopping trips? Is it important to you that your wine be organic as well? I will admit over the last few years I have added much more organic meat and produce to my diet and it’s even easier to do so living in Vermont with all the local food we have to choose from. As a wine enthusiast who purchases a great deal of wine regularly, I really haven’t given organic wine much thought. There is an organic section for wine in our City Market Co-op that to be honest, for a long time I didn’t even give it a glance. While walking by on one of our weekly grocery trips, I happened to spy a few wines with eye catching labels. This was my introduction to Biokult, producer of organic wines in Austria.
What Is Biokult?
Biokult consists of a group of organic vintners located in Pamhagen in the Niederösterreich region of Austria’s Burgenland. These producers are certified in organic production and have a dedication to promoting biodiversity and soil health in the vineyards. Their distributor, Natural Merchants, writes this about the participating vineyards:
“It buzzes, hums, chirps, and blooms: an organic vineyard offers a friendly environment for many insects, micro-organisms, and yeasts. Green cover between the vine rows secures biodiversity. Next to numerous wild herbs and flowers, specially selected plants are also sown. Clove varieties promote structure and assimilate nitrogen in the soil. Phacelia is not only an aesthetic blooming plant; its roots loosen compact soils. Green cover offers an attractive environment for earthworms and beneficial insects. Intact soil is the most vital precondition for authentic wines. Protecting the earth from the use of all chemicals should be a priority to hand down to future generations.”
The Wine Labels
Those wine labels that caught my eye? The art reflects the herbs and wildflowers described above. These cover crops encourage microorganisms needed for the health of the soil, contain wild yeasts, and provide the perfect environment for pollinators. Shown below on the wines I purchased are The Sculpit on the Gruner Veltliner, an herb with deep roots that attracts bees and butterflies, and the Loosestrife on the rose, an herb used for remedies as well as important for pollinating insects.
Biokult Wines
Now let’s talk about the wines themselves. The first vintage produced by Biokult was in 2005. Since then they have achieved a reputation for producing fine, organic wines that are also vegan. The winemaking is overseen by husband and wife winemakers Angela and Werner Michlits who make sure the fresh, fruit forward style of the wines take center stage. To do this, much of the aging is done using stainless steel and neutral barrels. So far I have purchased their Naken orange wine, the Zweigelt Rose, and the Osterreich Gruner Veltliner, all from the 2020 vintage. Each of these wines are featured below and one thing to notice on all of these wines is their spectacular color in the glass!
Naken
Naken is Biokult’s skin contact orange wine that has been getting quite a bit of buzz in the natural wine world and even made the Wine Enthusiast Top 100 Wines of 2020 list. Orange wine in general seems to be growing in popularity. This style is made from white wine grapes that are fermented on their skins for several days. This extracts color and tannin to the white wine. The Biokult Naken is made using 90% Pinot Gris and 10% Muskateller organic grapes that spend 5-10 days fermenting with their skins. This wine is effervescent with a small amount of CO2 and is bottled with a crown cap. The color in the glass is a beautiful pink salmon color. This is a dry wine with medium body, medium acidity, and light tannins. Alcohol is low at 10.5%. On the nose are aromas of white flowers, stone fruit, and orange citrus. On the palate are flavors of peach, apricot, orange zest, and honey. I paired this with Ina Garten’s Roasted Shrimp and Orzo Salad and it was a perfect match!
Zweigelt Rosé
As with the Naken, the first thing you notice with the Biokult Zweigelt Rosé is the saturated, gorgeous pink watermelon color! It might just be the prettiest rosé I’ve ever tasted. This wine also has an effervescence to it upon pouring the first glass, but is not bottled using a crown cap. I’m pretty sure this is due to reductive winemaking used to preserve the wine’s color with carbon gas. This rose is 100% Zweigelt, Austria’s #1 red grape variety. These grapes are grown in sandy-clay soils textured with granite. Once picked, the wine is made using a short maceration, followed by 7 months aging in stainless steel tanks. Biokult Rosé is dry and medium bodied, with medium acidity, and low tannins. Alcohol is medium at 11%. Light aromas of strawberry with more pronounced citrus and a hint of white pepper on the nose. The flavors of this wine I described as a rush of all red fruit: cherry, strawberry, watermelon, cranberry, with some orange zest on the finish. This rose is perfect for spring and summer picnic sipping!
Osterreich Grüner Veltliner
Last but not least we have the Biokult Osterreich Grüner Veltliner. This is 100% organic Grüner Veltliner grapes grown in sandy-clay soil. Just like the rosé, it is aged for 7 months in stainless steel. I love to drink Grüner all year long but something about this version just screams summer to me. In the glass the wine is a pale lemon color. This dry white wine is light bodied, with medium acidity, and comes in at 11.5% alcohol. Aromas coming out of the glass are lime zest, white pepper, and a chalky minerality. More white pepper flavor on the palate accompanied by juicy pear, lemon-lime, and saline. Very refreshing!
Overall I really enjoy these Biokult wines and would definitely repurchase them regularly. They also produce a Pinot Noir/Zweigelt red blend and a Rosé Secco which I have yet to see for sale here in Vermont and would love to try!
