In the fictional Gut Oggau family, Joschuari sits among the parents' generation as the son of Mechthild and Bertholdi, the brother of Emmeram and Timotheus, married to Wiltrude and father to Theodora and Atanasius. He is described as a man with style and a charismatic, complex character, someone with a mind of his own and the dry humour to back it up. More than capable of standing up to his own father.

The wine matches the description. Joschuari is 100% Blaufränkisch from limestone and slate slopes with more direct sun exposure than the children's generation vineyards, producing a wine with notably more body and structure than Atanasius while remaining elegant and precise rather than heavy. The vineyard yields between 1.5 and 2.5 tons per hectare. The grapes are hand-harvested and destemmed, fermented in 500-litre and 1200-litre used barrels with three weeks of skin contact, then aged for twelve months in the same barrels without batonnage, bottled unfined, unfiltered and without added sulphur. 

The 2012 vintage in Burgenland was warm, generous and widely considered one of the finest of the decade. Blaufränkisch from this year produced wines of exceptional concentration, ripe tannins and the kind of fruit depth that rewards patience. Tasting notes describe dusty red fruit aromas with touches of barnyard and pepper, a medium-bodied palate with spicy red fruit and dry tannins. Thirteen years in bottle have softened and integrated those tannins considerably, bringing out a tertiary complexity of dried herbs, forest floor and fading fruit that makes this one of the most genuinely interesting bottles currently available from the Gut Oggau range. Joschuari is a vibrant and soulful Blaufränkisch. At 12.5% alcohol it remains lively and focused rather than overblown. Open it, let it breathe properly and take your time with it.