2020 Bott Frigyes Muzsla Cuvée
Južnoslovenská, Slovakia
2020
50% Riesling, 25% Sauvignon Blanc, 25% Pinot Blanc
Continental (hot summers & cold winters)
clay on top of volcanic bedrock
One week in Frigyes' hamburger method followed by 10 months in neutral oak barrels on the lees
13.25%
1.4 g/l
6.6 g/l
Notes & Pairings
This is the premium estate white blend. Muzsla is the name of the hill where the vineyards look down onto the Danube. It’s only the third vintage. Early on Frigyes considered his more reductively made lineup as “terroir” driven wines and his more macerated and oxidative lineup as more of the “soul” of the property. The Muzsla was the first to bridge this divide. Like the vast majority of their wines, this is made using the Hamburger method: three layers of foot trodden, whole cluster and whole berry fermented in open vats. The 2020 spend one week in this hamburger method followed by 10 months in neutral oak barrels on the lees. Only racked once before bottling, then bottled unfiltered with a small addition of SO2. There’s weight, texture and freshness from the whole clusters, more chiseled acid driven elements from the whole berries, and it all comes together seamlessly. Some sips feel like a skin contact wine, some like stainless steel reductive winemaking, but the color, texture and aromatics give this wine a firm Goldilocks status in the Bott Frigyes lineup.
