ZAIG | Vie Veche | F.A. & M.O. | Rupäsch | 2020
feteasca alba | muscat

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Today we are going to review a wine that we were eager to try for a very long time – Vie Veche F.A. & M.O. Rupäsch 2020 by Casa de Vinuri Zaig. This wine is a blend of two grape varieties: 60% feteasca alba (an old, indigenous romanian variety that dates back for almost two thousand years) and 40% muscat ottonel (an old member of the muscat family that was quite famous in the Hapsburg Empire – a crossing bred in the Loire from the table grape chasselas and the local muscat variety), where feteasca alba forms the main body and structure of the wine, while muscat ottonel adds up-front crispness and brings floral-sweet notes to the foreground. What makes this wine unique is that the grapes were sourced from 100 years old vines, from the Lechinta wine growing area in Transilvania and produced in a limited edition of only 2700 bottles. The wine is signed by Cristina Carazan and Zaig Eckehardt – the two winemakers of Casa de Vinuri Zaig. That said and without further ado, let’s move on straight to our tasting results.
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Take a look at the tasting notes below and our detailed assessment of the wine:

//Visual
color: straw white color
clarity: bright yellow hues

//Olfactory
intensity: rich & clean
fruit profile: green fruits | citrus fruits | sweet fruits
__green fruits: green pear | apple | quince
__citrus fruits: lemon | maracuya
__sweet fruits: melon | nectarine
fruit character: overripe

//Flavor
non fruit: floral | sweet
__floral: rose petal | peonies | iris | jasmine
__sweet: pear candy | lemon candy | cotton candy
primary layer: fruity–floral

//Palate
sweetness: dry
acidity: medium
alcohol: high
tannin: low
__grip: green
balance: fair
__dominant: alcohol
body: wide | medium-

//Taste
fruit profile: sweet fruits
fruit character: ripe
non fruit: floral & sweet
finish: medium-
aftertaste: bitter-crisp

//Scoring
ZAIG | Vie Veche | F.A. & M.O. | Rupäsch | 2020
variety: feteasca alba | muscat
country: Romania | Transilvania
region: Lechinta | Teaca
rating: 91.0

//Conclusion
maturity: in its prime | drink now
verdict: fine | highly recommended
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This is definitely a fine wine of Romania and with a total of 91.0 points scored, this wine is right there, among the best wines we’ve rated so far. Check our complete database on the wine rating page, where you can find all the wines that we have tasted and reviewed or go to the about us page and find out more about our exquisite rating system.

Verdict: this is a quite lean, opulent and wide blend, with a very expressive nose but one that lacks structure and complexity on the palate. The wine is right there, in its prime form, therefore we would recommend to drink it now, as it will not benefit from ageing. On the nose the wine brings overripe sweet and citrus fruits in the foreground, followed by a floral-tropical background and a very nuanced, candy-sweet accent in between. On the palate the wine delivers flat acidity, some phenolic bitterness and an overwhelming touch of alcoholic warmth showing through on the mouthfeel. All in all, this is a quite fair and very aromatic wine blend that will go well alongside simple seafood dishes, like for example garlic & butter shrimp or broiled salmon. Cheers!

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