Perfect Way is one of our favourite projects. On one hand it's a tribute to the almost eponymous 1972 Lou Reed song where he sums up the simple joys of life to enjoy a perfect day. On the other hand it is an ambitious attempt to create a wine which is able to accompany such a day.
Five traditional varieties from our region form the foundations for the Perfect Way: 54% Muscat Ottonel, 29% Sauvignon blanc, 8% Chardonnay, 4% Gelber Muskateller, 5% Traminer. Thanks to a cold and fresh May in the otherwise warm and dry 2019, the grape juice resulted in an astonishingly light, firmly structured and vibrant wine with loads of aromas.
In 2019 vintage, the Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay were co-fermented in an open vat for 14 days while Muskat Ottonel only spent three days on skins. The Traminer spent 20 days in amphora on skins, and Gelber Muskateller was pressed after a short maceration time.
After ageing separately in amphoras and old oak for half a year, the four wines were brought together just before bottling. The Perfect Way is neither filtered nor sulphured.
The wine is buoyant, subtle, agile and delicate. Petals, peaches and stones shape its flavour profile. Some supple tannins structure the wine on the palate. The mouthfeel is dense, savoury and agile, and the wine finishes with fragrant, mineral and fruity resonance. - Gerhard Pittnauer
Pittnauer's wines are elegant, structured, complex and beautifully drinkable - qualities that were highlighted when Gerhard was named 2014 Winemaker of the Year by Falstaff magazine. This, the highest accolade in Austrian wine, shows just how far the Pittnauers have come. It also goes some way to showing what a fiercely gifted individual we have on our hands. But then everything -from the Pitti blend, through the vivid addition-free wines and right up to the devastatingly good single vineyards - will pretty much tell you the same thing.