Zweigelt is a cross – a conjoining of two vinifera vines, Blaufrankisch and St Laurent – created by and named for Austrian breeder Fritz Zweigelt at the Klosterneuburg research centre in 1922. Fairly early-ripening, Zweigelt makes exciting high-toned reds, especially if growers curb the vine’s natural vigour and limit its yields. If those yields are managed, Zweigelts are red-violet in colour when young and show ageworthy full-bodied black and Morello cherry fruit condusive to light barrel-ageing. Most of its acreage is found in Austria and Hungary but there are Zweigelt wines being produced in Germany and the Czech Republic, Japan, and both British Columbia and Ontario in Canada.