Alois Kracher TBA #2 Zwischen den Seen / 2022 / 375mL

Description:

The Alois Kracher TBA No. 2 Zwischen den Seen 2022 is a Welschriesling Trockenbeerenauslese from Neusiedlersee-Burgenland, gold in the glass and intensely sweet without ever turning heavy. Vinified in stainless steel rather than oak, it keeps its fruit clear and its acid bright.

Aromas run to ripe yellow stone fruit, candied lemon and dried apricot, with the honeyed, faintly herbal lift that botrytis brings. The palate is concentrated and mouthfilling, moving through quince paste and marmalade towards a savoury, almost saline edge that stops the sweetness from settling.

Weight here comes from sugar rather than alcohol, and at 10.5% the wine stays light on its feet. Acidity cuts a clean line through the richness and the finish is long, bright and more refreshing than a wine of this concentration has any right to be.

In 2022 the Seewinkel was warm and dry, with an early budbreak, a cool May and a sunny summer setting up ideal botrytis conditions, and three selective picking passes. The result shows as freshness and definition alongside the density.

Serve well chilled with blue cheese, a fruit tart or crème brûlée, or on its own after dinner. The half bottle suits two people over an evening and will evolve faster than a 750mL, so drink from now to around 2040.