Ruster Ausbruch - The Liquid Gold!

Ruster Ausbruch (pronounced 'Rooster AHS-brook') is a dessert wine produced using botrytis affected grapes in the small town of Rust (pronounced 'Roost') in the Austrian wine region of Burgenland. Rust lies on the western shore of the lake Neusiedl or Neusiedlersee.

The Cistercian monks are largely accountable for beginning winemaking practises in the town of Rust almost 3000 years ago. They are also responsible for identifying and utilizing, the “noble rot” (Botrytis cinerea) that produces sweet wines by removing the moisture in grapes and leaving the concentrated sugars behind.

@The Free Town of Rust, Burgenland, Austria.

In 1524, Queen Mary of Hungary (the queen consort of Hungary and Bohemia and the wife of Louis II) presented a unique symbol to the winemakers of Rust, the letter ‘R’ for Rust, as a sign of origin and guarantee of quality to be marked on all export barrels. The symbol prevails on the corks and labels even today. In the 15th century, the town of Rust - at that time already trading in wine - bought the rights to establish a municipality such as a city or a town (to become a “Freetown” or “Freistadt”) from Emperor Leopold I in 1681. They paid “60.000 guldens (the historical German term for gold coin) and 500 buckets (28,000 litres) of Ruster Ausbruch,” which would today be equal to 300,000 litres of the precious wine. Thus buying the town charter and their freedom from the local Duke’s taxation and answering directly to the Emperor. 

The lake Neusiedl or Neusiedlersee is responsible for the occurrence of Noble Rot in the area. In the warm summer and mild autumn, the lake fog covers vineyards in the morning and is followed by bright sunshine as the day progresses. These conditions are fundamental for noble rot to develop. This noble rot (Botrytis cinerea), in turn, softens and shrivels the grapes into raisin-like berries which help concentrate the grapes’ acidity, sugar, extract and aromas. The word “Ausbruch” is derived from the German word “Ausbrechen” which means to “break out”, referring to harvesting of the grapes which have been affected by noble rot as they are the ones to be picked or “broken out” from the bunch in several passes (tries) as the rot begins to strike the vineyards. 

@Noble Rot aka Botrytis Cinerea on grape bunches.

In earlier times Ruster Ausbruch was made in a style similar to its Hungarian neighbour, Tokaj. It was produced by adding a little non-botrytized juice to the fermenting botrytized berries to help dissolve crystallized sugars and catalyze the fermentation. But the true potential of the wine was realized by nobles and kings who consumed the wines made solely from botrytized grapes and aged this golden nectar for years even centuries in their cellars and drank it only during special occasions. This wine today as per the Austrian Prädikatswein is classified as a TBA (Trockenbeerenauslese - harvested at a must weight of 30 ° KMW*) style of wine unless the wines don’t have enough sugar to qualify, and then it becomes Beerenauslese.

 @Ruster Ausbruch.

Ruster Ausbruch was essentially produced using Furmint (the main grape for Tokaj), now Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Welschriesling, Neuberger, and Traminer are more generally used. Ruster Ausbruch can be produced only in the town of Rust. Since July 2016, a TBA from Rust may be called Ausbruch or Ruster Ausbruch. For TBA with another origin, it is not authorised to use the term 'Ausbruch'.

Ruster wines are known for their incredible acidity. They are characteristic golden to amber in colour, fresh and bright on the palate, making them easy to drink and can be paired with a wide array of dishes and not only desserts. Ruster Ausbruch tends to have aromas of candied lemon, dried apricots, orange peel, honeysuckle, honey and stony minerality. Due to the minuscule quantities of Ausbruch made in Austria and the low consumption of dessert wines, one can rarely see these wines outside the country. But if you do happen to travel to Austria, if you see a Ruster Ausbruch anywhere, you should try it.

Here are some labels to look out for:

• Feiler-Artinger, Ruster Ausbruch Essenz
• Weingut Ernst Triebaumer, Ruster Ausbruch
• Wenzel Ruster Ausbruch Saz
• Schrock & Kracher, Ruster Ausbruch
• Peter Schandl, Ruster Ausbruch

* KMW (Klosterneuberg Mostwaage scale) is the scale used to measure must weight in Austria. One degree KMW means 1g of sugar per 100g of grape must.

Article by – Kevin Rodrigues, Certified Sommelier.