Kerschbaum Wines, the Heart of Mittelburgenland

Updated February 26, 2025.

Burgenland is a region of solitary beauty. Looking at Austria’s map, it appears as a small appendage abandoned to the east. Zoom out, and you realize it’s the gateway to the Pannonian Plain. Driving along straight roads that cut across borders etched into a uniform landscape, one feels a quiet vastness.

From here come Austria’s finest red wines. Events like “A Glass of Burgenland” do a great job bringing these products to Vienna and beyond, but it was at MondoVino 2024 that I first encountered the wines of Kerschbaum (formerly Paul Kerschbaum). I was struck by their stylistic precision—always focused but never heavy—and fell in love with the 2022 Blaufränkisch Dürrau.

Now, there are many reasons why Austria feels like a First-World country. One of them is that Sundays are truly Sundays—for everyone. No work. At wineries, even Saturdays are often off days, following an office-style rhythm rather than a tourist schedule.

I was fortunate, however, to connect with David Raidl, who manages sales at the estate. He kindly arranged a Saturday appointment at the Horitschon tasting room, and the welcome was as serious as the wines themselves. I had the opportunity to taste Kerschbaum’s entire range.

Rosés and Whites from Kerschbaum

We started with the Rosé Brut, a méthode classique sparkling wine made using the saignée method—that is, “bleeding off” part of the juice from red grapes to concentrate the remainder for red vinification, while the bled-off portion becomes the rosé. The grapes are Blaufränkisch, and bottle fermentation is handled by Szigeti, the Burgenland sparkling-wine giant. The result is a very very good wine, with a very polite bead of bubbles—fine-edged yet broad—and impressive density. On the palate, wild strawberry and red-fruit notes come through. It’s sheer pleasure to drink.

One thing I noticed when talking with David and especially while tasting is that at Kerschbaum they understand wine is a game—and games are very serious business. You see it in their consistently intense signature and the emphasis on structure imparted to their wines from the very second label onward: their still Rosé, always made by saignée. On the nose there are aromas of white peach and lemon. Citrusy and vibrant on the palate, it finishes with a saline note. It stands up beautifully to food. Excellent density and character with layered profiles—not the most delicate, but absolutely delicious.

A curiosity: until the 1980s, Burgenland was predominantly a white-wine region—sweet and rich as was customary at the time. It was pioneers like Paul Kerschbaum, Geselmann and a few others who steered the Mittelburgenland DAC (where Horitschon sits) toward reds—a truly epochal and fortunate change for this appellation.

But Kerschbaum have also returned to whites. Starting with the Grüner Veltliner Reserve 2021, a white made from grapes purchased (and hand-harvested only if they meet Kerschbaum’s quality standards) from a non-estate vineyard in the Leithaberg DAC (the estate itself owns about 40 ha of reds and buys 4 ha of whites). The wine benefits: it’s no run-of-the-mill Grüner Veltliner. Here you find plenty of complexity, with tropical-fruit layers unfolding horizontally. A very long, saline finish. The varietal character transforms with ten months in new oak, becoming less immediately recognizable.

Their main focus among whites, however, is the Chardonnay Reserve 2022, also made from carefully selected non-estate vines and fermented and aged in new wood. This time the site is the limestone Katterstein vineyard, also in Leithaberg. I found it rich and inviting, with vanilla-butter toast from the oak up front, then a vibrant vegetal nuance that gives structure. A New World style.

While I found the Chardonnay good, in my view the Grüner Veltliner is Kerschbaum’s best white. The Chardonnay is what you expect from a reserve of this type, but the Grüner wears the producer’s “Burgundian” signature and the terroir on its sleeve—turning its potential flaw (lower acidity than cooler regions) into an opulent, defining trait. Definitely worth tasting!

Kerschbaum’s Young Red Wines

The estate follows a logic I struggle to decipher in its beautiful labels: the cherry-tree image has a pink background for rosé, green for whites, blue–violet for old-wood reds, and warm tones for those aged in new oak. Color-blind tasters, beware. In any case, let’s move on to the younger red wines, all of which see some time in wood.

The Zweigelt 2022 is juicy with a very spicy finish, while its vinous nose gives way to a black-cherry palate. It’s pleasant and even shows a touch of complexity. I’ve never been a huge fan of Zweigelt, so hats off to Kerschbaum for giving it such purpose.

Even better is the Blaufränkisch 2022—purple pistons firing up and down. Exuberant, with plenty of pepper, yet balanced by dense fruit and aromas of hazelnut and tobacco. It offers superb juiciness and an explosive character. The grapes ferment for fifteen days and undergo partial malolactic in wood, then mature in used barriques and large oval oak vats.

Im Panorama der Rotweine, Pinot Noir (hier verglichen mit Blaufränkisch)

Here you can clearly see Blaufränkisch’s edge over other Austrian reds. Its innate spiciness lends a rare vibrancy, and although it can be reserved at first, it always moves with elegant poise. In this case it’s vivid but never obvious—truly a fantastic wine.

Faithful to Paul Kerschbaum’s motto that “there must be a wine for every occasion,” his son Michael introduced Opera 2021 three years ago. This semi-Bordeaux blend (60% Blaufränkisch, 40% Merlot) ferments spontaneously on the skins for 24 days and then ages 18 months in 500 L barrels. While it’s unquestionably well made—the estate never compromises on quality—I found it less compelling. It feels like a soft, enveloping semicircle of purple arms: plenty of cherry on nose and palate, Merlot in command, with acidity that holds everything together. Medium-bodied, with clean, approachable tannins.

My favorite in this category was the first single-vineyard release I tried: Blaufränkisch Hochäcker 2023. Here, the topsoil is loess and silt over gravel, making it well-drained and resilient, especially in wet years—though drought can still pose a risk. That’s why Kerschbaum planted selected Blaufränkisch vines with very small clusters, yielding concentration and resistance.

The wine that emerges is elegant and refined, like purple roots sinking into limestone. It shows precise aromas of red berries and red currant, then delivers a wet-stone sensation and herbaceous salinity on the palate. There’s great finesse here: the oak aging masks nothing, instead highlighting the terroir’s true character.

Kerschbaum’s Great Reds

The estate does not shy away from oak; rather, it wields it with wisdom. The approach is traditional, yet evolved from the heavy-handed wood bombs that were fashionable when Paul Kerschbaum first began bottling his wines nearly forty years ago. You see how wood can speak without shouting—even when it leaves a marked imprint—in the Blaufränkisch Dürrau 2022.

The Dürrau vineyard is considered one of Burgenland’s most extraordinary crus. Here, robust and long-lived Blaufränkisch vines—some over 70 years old, also if the company believes above a certain age the old vines stop to be beneficial to the wine: an interestin point of view that I want to explore further —take root in deep soils of silt and high-clay content, rich in iron (evident in its rusty patches). In the driest years, Dürrau serves as a natural water reserve, preserving freshness and fine acidity that make its grapes nearly unrivaled in quality.

The Blaufränkisch Dürrau 2022 ferments for 21 days at controlled temperature. Malolactic conversion takes place in oak barrels, where the cuvée then matures for 15 months. The resulting wine is like a magma slowly expanding horizontally: chalky tannins remain dominant, while flavors of roasted coffee beans and dark chocolate emerge. Its bright acidity guarantees its future. Taut and tense.

Even more impressive was Kerschbaum’s most famous wine, the Impresario Cuvée 2022. This blend of 60% Blaufränkisch, 20% Zweigelt, 15% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon spends 24 days on the skins before aging 18 months in new oak. David explains that the name “Impresario” refers to the opera producer who must harmonize many components.

The Impresario Cuvée 2022 is built to be adored—yet it remains very closed. It’s a dark sea awaiting resolution. On the nose you find black currant, juniper berry, cassis and whispers of oak spice. On the palate the tannins are still compact, but Blaufränkisch’s spice guides the sip toward a long, satisfying finish. Exceptional.

And then something happened that really struck me. David brought out a bottle of the 2016 Impresario Cuvée to show me how it had evolved over time, and we tasted it together. He, too, was genuinely eager to see what the years had crafted in this wine. And here—pardon the digression—I believe lies one of the greatest joys of wine: the bond between producers (those driven by passion, not mere commerce) and their creation. When even the presenter is eager to uncover a wine’s secrets and can’t help but fall in love with it, the experience transcends mere tasting. It becomes social and emotional: we drink together, learn together. That connection is why visiting winemakers is so worthwhile—and in this case, I couldn’t have asked for a better introduction.

Tasting the Impresario Cuvée 2016, I found a dark compote rushing downward—notes of cooked blueberries and raspberries. The acidity and tannins now play a supportive role, while sweet spices enrich the long finish. I fully intend to cellar the bottles I purchased to enjoy similar rewards in years to come.

We then closed with the Paul Kerschbaum Cuvée 2021, formerly known simply as Cuvée Kerschbaum in honor of its founder. This classic Bordeaux-style blend (50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 50% Merlot) is excellent, though not as unique or compelling as the Impresario. It’s a bold canvas of jammy blackberries and plums, with a long, nutmeg-tinged finish and tannins that support without dominating—a juicy, satisfying conclusion.

Serious wines made with precision and no shortcuts, in the heart of Burgenland. Cheers!

Bottles Purchased

• Rosé Brut × 2
• Grüner Veltliner Reserve
• Chardonnay Reserve
• Blaufränkisch Hochäcker × 2
• Blaufränkisch Dürrau × 2
• Impresario Cuvée × 2

Here we are — after tasting a few bottles, these are my impressions.

My impressions so far

Rosé Brut – the bubble that doesn’t want to fight

The Rosé Brut is, on paper, a Metodo Classico made from Blaufränkisch using the saignée method. In the glass it is peach-pink, with a dense, broad mousse that does not want to disturb the conversation.

On the nose come wild strawberries, leavened bread, cherry yogurt. There is a more evolved component that takes the stage first, but the fruit is ready to step back in. The perlage is dense; the bubbles are large but thin-edged: polite, never aggressive. Accessible.

On the palate, red fruit flavours emerge, becoming juicy, almost chewable. The finish is savoury, clean, not long — and it does not want to be. This is not a bubble for a duel at the table. It can accompany a dish, but it does not fight it. It is more a wine for conviviality than for a statement of intent. Pleasant, well-centered, yet still slightly incomplete compared to what Metodo Classico can be.

Blaufränkisch Ried Hochäcker 2023 – authority, not power

Exceptional.

Compact ruby red, crossed by dark reflections. If I had to describe it in images: a black train racing at full speed on incandescent rails, leaving red sparks behind it.

This is a Blaufränkisch that takes its role very seriously. Three perfectly coherent registers from nose to finish:

• dark fruit (sour cherry, plum),
• spice (dark chocolate, cinnamon, nutmeg),
• and an almost liturgical dimension (smoke, incense).

On the palate it is juicy yet sharp, linear like a beam of light. The acidity pushes the warmer, spicier notes forward without ever letting them collapse. The tannins are powerful, sandy, concentrated on the central gums: you feel them — oh, you feel them.

The finish is a firework of spices, long and persistent, but — and this is the point — it is not a wine of power. It is a wine of authority. It does not overwhelm you with volume; it convinces you with posture. You sense that it could become much more over the next five years. A self-confident wine.

Blaufränkisch Ried Dürrau 2022 – a promise not fulfilled

Here, I admit, I was taken aback.

Deep violet in colour. The nose is beautiful: old wood, cherry, juniper, burnt bark, chocolate.

Then the sip does not maintain the promised tension. The fruit is less concentrated than expected, leaning green, undefined. It is not a bad wine — quite the opposite — but it lacks composure and force. There are blueberries, currants, plum, pepper, chili, smoke. The profiles are there, but they do not organize themselves into a convincing structure.

The acidity is present but does not pull the wine forward. The tannins are medium, powdery, spread broadly across the mouth but not incisive. Paired with the beef fillet I had, the fruit emerged and the savoury, dry finish worked well. But compared to the Hochäcker, I missed that controlled impetuosity, that clear direction.

Grüner Veltliner Reserve 2021 – a great idea, fragile architecture

The nose is broad: vanilla, custard cream, meadow flowers, tropical fruit. Pineapple, ripe pear, a hint of mango. The oak is evident but not excessive, framing the aromatic profile with sweetness rather than spice.

The first impression is generous, almost opulent. There is volume, there is warmth, there is ambition. You feel that this wine wants to stand in the Reserve category not as an afterthought, but as a statement.

And yet, the structure does not fully support the idea.

On the palate the fruit spreads out but does not tighten. The acidity is present, but it does not carve; it cushions. It rounds rather than defines. The wine moves horizontally instead of vertically. What begins as architectural breadth lacks inner tension.

There are moments of beauty — a salty flicker in the mid-palate, a gentle herbal echo typical of Grüner Veltliner — but they appear and fade without fully integrating into a cohesive line.

The finish is medium in length, creamy, slightly warm. Pleasant, certainly. But compared to the clarity and authority of the Hochäcker, this feels less centered. A wine with a convincing concept, yet a fragile internal structure. It may find greater harmony with time, but today it speaks more of potential than of resolution.