Production

Blauer Zweigelt is the most important red grape variety grown on Sepp Moser's Apetlon Estate, situated in the Neusiedlersee region of Austria. The summers in this region are very hot and dry; the vineyards are less than 1 km away from the Hungarian border. The deep, dark humous soils (well streaked with gravel) contribute to the smoothness of the wines produced here. The grapes are organically produced and hand harvested in September. All Sepp Moser wines are vinified centrally at the Sepp Moser Winery in Rohrendorf (Kremstal). The grapes in Sepp Zweigelt were de-stemmed, crushed and underwent partial cold maceration. The must was then fermented and given a brief period of ageing in stainless steel before being bottled in February.

Producer

The Sepp Moser Estate was founded by the famous Austrian wine producing pioneer, Lenz Moser. Lenz Moser's son, Sepp Moser, began operating under his own name in 1987 and handed over the direction of this family-owned estate to his own son Nikolaus in the year 2000.

The Sepp Moser Estate comprises of 50 acres of vineyards in two prominent wine regions; Kremstal (22 ha) and Neusiedlersee (28 ha). In the Kremstal, Nikolaus produces an international range of varieties as well as the ever more important local varieties of Gruner Veltliner and Riesling. The reds are produced on the gravelly soils of the warm southern Neusiederslee village of Apetlon. All Sepp Moser wines have been organic (and all estate wines biodynamic) since 2007.

Sustainability

The Sepp Moser estate produces a wide range of wines every year thanks to its vineyards in two diverse regions. There is one main aim in the cellar: the quality of the grapes shall be brought with as little influence as possible to the bottle. The grapes in the Sepp Moser vineyards are harvested by hand and at the cellar of the Atrium House Nikolaus Moser emphasizes gentle vinification and tries to interfere as little as possible with the process so that each wine can develop its own individual style. The fermentation starts spontaneously, and the maturing of the wine takes place on its own.

In 2006, Nikolaus officially moved the estate to biodynamic viticulture – one of the first to do so in Austria – and became Demeter certified. 2009 saw the release of Sepp Moser’s first certified organic wines. Nikolaus is very keen to reduce the amount of copper and sulphur used in the vineyards, and this year saw a reduction of two thirds over what was sprayed previously. He composts all the estates' pomace and vine trimmings, and there is an ongoing effort to plant trees around the vineyards.

Specifications