Is Zweigelt really supposed to be a serious wine?

Winemakers in Carnuntum have a point to prove when it comes to their single vineyard Zweigelt. Simon asks, is this really the style we want from this grape variety?

Grape varieties are like humans. They all have different strengths, and sometimes it's best when they play to them. Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay are the rare chameleons of the grape universe - able to turn their hands to just about anything. But take a grape like Riesling, and most wine lovers prefer it fairly naked, without oak or even its malolactic fermentation.

Yellow Muscat and Torrontes are glorious when youthful and floral. Who needs them to be aged or matured in wood? Conversely, tannic varieties such as Nerello Mascalese or Nebbiolo are in their element producing structured, serious wines for laying down. Yes, you can tame them and make carbonically macerated glou glou, but it misses the point. Why not just start with Nero d'Avola or Barbera instead?

Zweigelt is one of those grapes whose destiny has largely been to make simple, youthful wines. It's not for nothing that it's one of Austria's most planted grape varieties (despite only coming into being in 1922). Not only is …