Wenzel Wild & Free Franky 2022

What we love about Wenzel is ...well…everything! First and foremost is that he makes pure, delightfully clean natural wine. Second is his story, that of a passionate, successful winemaker who had a philosophical revelation. A natural winemaker’s job is to cultivate vitality he says. “I call natural wine the product of pure, unadulterated fermented grape juice. Organic farming is simply the prerequisite.” Michael stopped using any synthetic pesticides and began to rely entirely on native yeasts. “Natural yeasts are - and it took me a long time to realize this - the real winemakers. My responsibility as a winemaker is to respect nature.” They removed all metal from their vineyard. Each vine now has wooden support tied with a natural, biodegradable hemp ribbon. They began to prune their vines short, lower to the ground, so nutrients travel more easily into the vine. Their vines are densely planted to foster healthy competition increasing phenolics and keeping sugar levels low. Michael says this creates a more “harmonious” and balanced wine. “Good natural wine is not filling. There are many wines that you have had enough of after one glass. Natural wine ... has to be light and drinkable.”

Michael Wenzel's memories of his grandfather's wines from the 50s and 60s, when the family would daily have a glass of red with lunch, inspired him to produce this lighter, fresh, and fruity red called Franky, a wine that's not over-extracted and naturally appetizing.

It is a cuvee is 30% Pinot noir and 70% Blaufrankisch and about a third of the grapes underwent carbonic maceration. The rest naturally fermented in open vats. After five days the wine was pressed and finished in sandstone amphora and steel tank. The wine received a minimal amount of SO2 (4mg) at bottling, but no free SO2 can be measured. Serve chilled.