“Fat Franz” was Baron Franz Göler of Ravensburg, a renowned 18th century gourmand. The steep monopole grand cru named after him, however, gives rise to strikingly fine and intense wine, stripped of all needless weight but brimful of power and spice. This is a picture-perfect Baden Blaufränkisch at its apogée because of the estate’s enlightened policy of holding its top reds back for few years. In this, the first vintage where the vineyard was officially accorded Grosses Gewächs status, the wine recalls a Yirgacheffe coffee by dint of its gorgeous blueberry notes and roasted overtones. It speaks in a penetrating but not a loud voice.