Ruster Ausbruch DAC

A noble sweet white wine speciality made from noble rotten berries shrivelled into sultanas from the Austrian province of Burgenland. This traditional wine was already mentioned around the middle of the 16th century. In 1681, the Imperial Diet of Ödenburg (now Sopron in Hungary) elevated the market town of Rust to a royal free city in a document dated 3 December of that year. For this, the citizens of Rust had to pay Emperor Leopold I (1640-1705) in "real and liquid gold", namely the enormous sum of 60,000 gulden and the entire annual harvest of 500 buckets (equivalent to around 30,000 litres) of Ruster Ausbruch.

DAC Ruster Ausbruch

Since the 2016 vintage, the Prädikat wine grade Ruster Ausbruch has been origin-protected. From the 2020 vintage, it is classified as Ruster Ausbruch DAC (DAC = Districtus Austriae Controllatus). Only grapes from the municipality of Rust and directly neighbouring vineyards may be processed.

The term Ausbruch (see there) refers to a production method that is no longer used today. Today, this corresponds to the legal wine regulations of a Trockenbeerenauslese and is made from one or more white quality wine grape varieties ( cuvées are also permitted). As a rule, these are usually the grape varieties Chardonnay, Furmint, Gelber Muskateller, Welschriesling and Weißburgunder (Pinot Blanc).

Vinification

Only botrytised grapes that have shrivelled naturally on the vine and have been harvested by hand are permitted. The minimum must weight must be 30 °KMW. The sweet wine must be characterised by exuberant fruit, subtle botrytis notes, a piquant interplay of sweetness and acidity and a target alcohol content of 12% vol. Vinification must take place in the Rust vineyards. Ruster Ausbruch may only be marketed with the Cercle Ruster Ausbruch seal of quality after undergoing a strict quality test by means of blind tasting.

Picture left: © DWI (German Wine Institute)
Image on the right: by Walliswine - own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link