Laurenc 2020

Opaque purple-red with violet highlights and a black core. A Lagrein that translates its density into tension: sinewy, taut, polished. At 12.5% ABV it stays dry and agile, its austere astringency lending it edge.

The grapes grow on the vineyard directly by the estate, at 300 metres altitude and facing northwest, shaded by forest and swept by cool downdraughts. The soil is loamy sand of volcanic origin with morainic deposits of porphyry, basalt and granite, deep and well-drained. Across 0.7 hectares there are 7,000 vines per hectare, yielding around 6,000 kilos.

Single-varietal Lagrein, mostly trained on wire trellis, with a small portion still grown traditionally on pergola. Martin and Marion Gojer have farmed Pranzegg biodynamically and by hand since 2009. Fermentation was spontaneous, in an open wooden fermenter with whole clusters and four weeks of maceration. This was followed by 24 months in large oak and, after bottling, another 24 months resting in bottle, unfined, unfiltered, with only minimal sulphur added.

The nose is generous and dark-fruited: blackberry, dark mulberry, plum both fully ripe and stewed with mild spices, joined by allspice, juniper, light tobacco, sloe and hollyhock. On the palate the tannin remains fine-grained and tightly woven, yet polished. The juicy fruit shows more sinew than on the nose and wraps around the ripe acidity, leading into a long, fruity-tart finish.

Braised venison stew, braised leg of lamb with a juniper crust, roasted duck breast or aged mountain cheese.

Eight Ouessant sheep from Brittany graze between the vine rows, keeping the undergrowth short and fertilising naturally. On the steep slopes, much of the work can only be done by hand; Martin Gojer makes his own biodynamic preparations and forgoes synthetic pesticides and chemical fertilisers.