Ben's Bubbly: Hans Igler Sekt Brut Blaufränkisch

It has been a great week with Ben. With my family having gone back home and the parade of friends fading to a trickle, it has mostly just been mom, dad and Ben.While we've gotten a few less hours of sleep and the diaper changes are like running across a firing range (only to have a bomb explode moments after successfully avoiding a bullet!), everything has been great. At his one-week appointment, he had exceeded his birth weight by 3.5 oz. Last night, he slept for three three hour blocks (a record since the first night!). Today, Ben went on his first stroller ride outside and enjoyed it except for the occasional sun in his eyes. He is spending a little more time each day alert and looking around taking in the world surrounding him. With our life being so different than they were just two weeks ago, I chose a 'different' sparkling wine for this week's Ben's Bubbly.

NV Weingut Hans Igler, Sekt Brut, Blaufränkisch, Burgenland, Austria

Blaufränkisch, aka lemberger, wines are unique and often hard to find. I've written about a local lemberger produced by Carlson Vineyards here, but when I saw this sparkling blaufränkisch from Austria in a local wine shop I just had to have it. Not knowing anything about the wine before I popped and poured it, I was slightly surprised to see it pour a beautifully effervescent salmon-colored (think cooked salmon) glass of wine. The bubbles seemed to erupt from the bottom of the flute and cascade up the glass through the light pink juice. The nose was somewhat muted, but there we were able to pick up unripe strawberry and cranberry aromas. A little bit more expressive, yet green, on the palate, grass and toast with cranberry preserves were what came to mind with this tart sparkler. While not a profound wine in any way, it was tasty and fun. How often do you see sparkling blaufränkisch? I have one more bottle tucked away and will revisit it sometime after this year-long sparkling sojourn. 13% abv Purchased $14. Good (tasted 4/14/11)