Bâtonnage is the stirring of the lees during winemaking, making it a more than fitting label for a group of wine-loving revolutionaries that some might even suspect as agitators. These five winemakers are bringing movement to the Austrian wine scene, and the name "batonnage" is whispering among Austria's wine-loving public.

It all began with a legendary blind tasting between five friends Markus Altenburger, Florian Gayer, Gerhard Kracher, Erich Scheiblhofer, and Christian Tschida in 2000. That night, the "Club Batonnage" was born. Freed from the often high-profile conventions of the wine world, these five musketeers of good taste approach the medium of wine with a relaxed, easygoing approach.

The majority of the wine is made up of Blaufränkisch grapes, which, like the Cabernet Sauvignon, come from the minerally barren vineyards of the Leitha Mountains in Jois. The third grape partner is fully ripe Merlot, sourced from the Andau Prädium vineyards. On the day each variety is harvested, the Five Musketeers scour the vineyards in search of fully to slightly overripe grapes. These are cold-macerated at 4°C and then fermented. New French barriques in the "double-oak" style provide the necessary framework for this monument.