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Volt-wine
We are happy to present this year´s Volt-festival-wine and wish a pleasant festival!
www.sziget.hu/volt
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Open cellar door
We invite you to visit us in our winery in Balf! Our cellar doors will be open on May 8 and 9, 2010 from 9 am to 7 pm.
Our offers:
* Half price on tastings of Blanc de Noir 2008, Kékfrankos Sopron 2007 and Sopron Cuvée 2007
* 10% discount on all wine purchase
You can find more information about the open cellar doors in whole Hungary here: www.nyitottpince.hu
We look forward to your visit!
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Cherry blossom in Horitschon
One of the most beautiful times of the year in Horitschon is the blossom of the cherry trees. Here are some impressions from our gardens.
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Hungary for change
9 Febr 2010 by Jancis Robinson
Weninger, Spern Steiner Kékfrankos 2004 Sopron 17 Drink 2007-10
Kékfrankos = Blaufränkisch. Austrian owned, by Franz Weninger of Mittelburgenland. Round and smooth and slightly dusty. Good acidity - sour cherries? Light tannins. From clay soil. Just over the border from Austria s Burgenland. Very lively and well balanced. Very low yields. Fermented in open vats in both Hungarian and French oak. 13%
₤10 exCellars, UK importer Astrum
In the Wine Report 2009 we are mentioned as the 9th greatest wine producer of eastern and southeastern Europe!
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New year, new challenges and tasks
After Christmas holidays and New Year everyday life continued for us. In the new year we continue the pruning in the vineyard and in the cellar there´s a lot of work waiting, too. Slowly we will prepare the white wines for botteling and we can already reveal that there´ll be a surprise soon!
You can find the dates for the next tastings and wine events in our calendar.
This year there will be all the traditional events like open cellar door, Sopron wine festival and Kékfrankos nights.
We are looking forward to your visit at our winery and at the numerous events!
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Harvest 2009
The harvest is over. And slowly it´s getting quiet in the cellar again. The quality of the grapes was extraordinary. I think that it can be compared best to the 2000 vintage. The quantity was very small, on the one hand due to the climate conditions (low weight of the berries and thick skin), on the other hand the hail in july destroyed the bigger part of our harvest. At the moment Cabernet Sauvignon and Blaufränkisch are still lying on the skins in the tank, in about ten days those last berries will also be pressed. The malolactic fermentation in the cellar has already started and should be finished before Christmas.
On october 5th my son Paul was born, he makes us very happy.
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More new wines
Blanc de Noir 2008:
Behind this name stands a white wine made out of red grapes. By pressing them directly no color and tannins were extracted. Alike champagne, also this wine is mainly made from Pinot Noir. On the palate fresh, creamy and fruity. Well structured wine. Long aftertaste with lots of fruit.
Sopron Cuvée 2007:
With this wine we pay tribute to our region. This easy-drinking but expressive red reveals more about the terroir than the grape varieties from which it is made. You might not be immediately able to pick out the Merlot and Syrah components, but you'll love the fruitiness and spice of this subtle expression of Sopron.
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Now available!
Fehérburgundi 2008: a big success in the last years. With the vintage 2008 we top this - fruity, nice acidity and smooth finish, this is how the new vintage tastes.
Kékfrankos Rosé 2008: After 6 months storage time our Rosé is in the bottle now. Thus we gave him enough time to clear and stabilize on its own. Fresh fruity, slightly tangy, a wonderful summer wine!
Both wines are available from now on at our winery or with our partners.
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The black sheep
Tonight Gloria gave birth to two lambs, we are very happy about it!
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Hibernation
The period of hibernation starts in november and will last approximately until middle of april. In the vineyard in this weeks we begin with the pruning of the grapes. The ripening of the wood is completed short time after the fall of leaves. However during the early winter there are still nutrients transferred from the end of the shoots to the basis; through this the ripening is improved. Not before december, best from middle of january, we start with the pruning of the vines in the vineyard. Until february we will have finished it.
The grapes are pruned manually. The pruning is important to determine the quantity of the harvest and the quality of the grapes in the following year. Therefore for the winemaker it is the first glance into the future, to next year´s harvest, with which he can guide his vine.
Every vine is pruned individually. If a vine has grown a lot in the last year, we leave more buds for the next year, if he grew only a little bit, we prune him more. In this way we try to bring the vine better to its balance.
Yet Goethe wrote that the commercial winegrowing only became possible through the pruning. Only because of this action our cultivated varieties bring fruit regularly. Because this intervention of the human being, the containment of its growth, brings the vine to produce seeds, thus produce grapes.
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After the harvest is before the harvest
The harvest 2008 is almost finished. According to weather trend there was quite a lot to sort out with the early varieties. However, with Kékfrankos, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah we are fully satisfied. Very dark, wonderful fruit, good acid- and sugar value suggest a good vintage. The top wines from the best sites will be as good as the 2007 wines.
Harvest facts:
start date: september 3, 2008
end date: october 18, 2008
quantity: 88.857 kilos (corresponds to 3.700 kilos per hectar)
additional harvest helpers: 15
trainees in the cellar: 3 (from Germany and Hungary)
estimated water consumption: 40.000 litres (in exchange everything is clean)
estimated starling attacks: 12 (about 500.000 birds)
fruit flies: innumerable
We already restarted with the first soil works in the vineyard. The soil is kept closed, but under the vines we are earthing up. In this way the first steps for the harvest 2009 are done!
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bon voyage, Sommer Klaus, 2008. nyár
„Yes, the country needs pioneers!“
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Before the harvest
After two turbulent months the weather calmed down at the end of August. Now the grapes are ripening slowly and the cool nights bear very fruity wines.
However, with early varieties we have to assume there will be heavy damage and even cropp loss – with Fehérburgundi and Pinot Noir up to 40 percent loss due to fungal infections caused by heavy rainfall.
Meanwhile Kékfrankos produced small berries like never before this year, a fact we trace back to the long flower period. Even the thickness of the paring is extraordinary. All of this gives us hope of a very good Kékfrankos vintage.
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Animal life
One basic element of a healthy agriculture is according to Rudolf Steiner the animal life. What in former times went without saying in a farming, has nowadays vanished because of the specialisation. Monoculture has found its way into agriculture and the dying of species that comes with it.
My grandparents kept five cows and some hens. Grandmother had a notebook into which she wrote down, which vineyard would get dung and within five years, all gardens were manured. The circle was closed.
Today we look out that animal life can develop again in our winery. Besides our biodiversity program in the vineyard (planting of vegetation and retirement areas as living space for insects, nesting boxes for birds, compost for worms), this year we began to deal with companion animals for the first time. Indeed it is just a small experiment, but it should help us to get to know again the work with animals and to recover the knowledge of our grandparents step by step.
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Wine and cinema under the stars
The first cinema festival under the Sopron fire tower has the theme "time in images". The bilingual open-air-summer-cinema is taking place from 25th of july until 2nd of august 2008 on the unique bastion terrace next to the city wall, in the shadow of Sopron´s landmark, the 1000 year old fire tower. The festival guarantees unforgettable nights in distinctive atmosphere.
Yet on the second festival day, from 8:15 pm on "In Vino Veritas" is on the programme. Alongside with the Hungarian film sketch "The Sopron wine" from 1934, the silent film "When the grapes ripen" from 1919 (with live-piano accompaniment) and "Mondovino" from Jonathan Nossiter (2004), every visitor can enjoy a glass of Weninger wine. And this in terms of the cross-border and bilingual festival from our wineries in Horitschon AND Balf!
Programme, films and tickets: www.feuerturmkino.eu (German) or www.tuztoronymozi.eu (Hungarian)
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Cherry time!
As traditional in Horitschon we also own several cherry gardens, for the most part cropped with the variety "Horitschoner Herzkirsche". But exactly when our cherry trees yield ripe fruits, we also have a lot of work to do in our wine gardens. Thus this year we neither manage to pick all of our cherries ourselves. So we invite you to stop by our cherry gardens and to pick and take with you as many cherries as you want! You can combine it with a visit at our wineries in Balf or Horitschon!
By the way: Just like our wine our cherries grow organically.
Position plan of our cherry gardens
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Awakening of spring
Balf from its most beautiful side. Accompanied by nice spring weather we opened our cellar doors on whitsun weekend.
Thank you for visiting us!
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Our new workplace
We are proud of our new tasting room. Enjoyably pervaded with light and furnished with precious materials, it provides ideal possibilities to experience our wines. Yet entering the room, the architecture explains the path of the wine. We look forward to your visit.
Cellar door sales:
Monday to friday 8 am to 4 pm, saturday 12 am to 4 pm
Tastings by arrangement: +36.99.5310-82
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Harvest Report 2007
You notice the humus layers not only in the vineyard but in the cellar too...
Two years after converting to a biodynamic cultivation method the impacts are unmistakably clear in this year’s harvest. In addition it was a long wine year that began with the first shoots appearing early and good weather all season. There was no early frost to bother the young shoots in the spring, neither in Hungary, nor in nearby central Burgenland. And fortunately there was no hail this year either. By mid-July heat had caused initial signs of drying out, but these were restricted to only a small area and mainly noticeable in the young rows.
Download full version
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Verjus
Verjus is a juice made from under-ripe grapes. Last year’s batch was pressed with care from quality grapes (of the Zweigelt variety) harvested in mid-July. Pasteurized and bottled without filtering, verjus is a biodynamic, natural product. In its acidity it is similar to the juice of citrus fruits, yet it is much milder. In medieval times this “green juice” was a culinary must, and its subtle and complex taste is being rediscovered today. It is especially delicious in salad dressings, fish dishes, meat marinades, refreshing beverages, and exotic cocktails. Wherever citrus fruits or vinegar with a hint of wine don’t harmonize well, verjus offers a sophisticated alternative.
For further information go to http://www.verjus.hu/de
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Weninger T-shirts
Vineyards are crawling with life – the biodynamic method of cultivation used by the Weningers relies on the help of different vineyard inhabitants. Ants, bees, stag beetles, and small caterpillars create good soil conditions and maintain the natural balance and a lively coexistence.
Now, wine lovers can enjoy our vineyard T-shirts: Hooded jackets, brown M,L,XL € 54.00 T-shirts women’s short-sleeve, fitted, and men’s short-sleeve S,M,L,XL € 23.00 T-shirts children’s, little caterpillar, short-sleeve € 19.00 All models, 100% cotton, printed Our staff and co-workers have been happily wearing their new work clothes. You can purchase yours directly at the estates or place an order per e-mail at balf@weninger.com or horitschon@weninger.com.
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Weninger’s Earthly Treasures
“Von diesen Böden müssen Sie kosten,” it says on our new Blaufränkisch box: “You’ve got to try these soils.” Time and time again our decades of wine-growing experience have shown us that it is above all the microclimate that determines the taste of the wine.
We want to present this range of flavors through wines from our best sites, e.g. Hochäcker and Kirchholz in central Burgenland, Saybritz in southern Burgenland, and Spern Steiner in Balf near Sopron. What is striking about this collection is that all the wines derive from the same grape variety, and yet because they come from different “soils” they differ in a very basic way.
Our Blaufränkisch box is dedicated to people who enjoy tasting and comparing. Our recommendation: open all the bottles at once and taste them blind. We have enclosed tasting notes in the box for reference, a detailed analysis of the soils conducted by experts from the Federal Institute of Geology in Vienna, and descriptions of the impacts of each of the soils on the wine.
Blaufränkisch Trio
Blaufränkisch Kirchholz, Blaufränkisch Hochäcker, Kékfrankos*
Blaufränkisch Sextet
Blaufränkisch Saybritz, Kékfrankos*, Spern Steiner Kékfrankos Selection, Blaufränkisch Hochäcker, Blaufränkisch Reserve, Blaufränkisch Kirchholz
Each box contains only current vintages.
(*Hungarian name for Blaufränkisch)
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September 8 - 12, 2010
International wine and champagne festival, Budapest, Budai Vár
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Jancis Robinson, 9. Februar 2010
* Spern Steiner Kékfrankos 2004: 17 Punkte
Wine report 2009 (Jancis Robinson), Global reports, Eastern & southeastern Europe:
* Greatest wine producers: 9. Weninger winery, Hungary
* Greatest-quality wines: 8. Kékfrankos Spern Steiner 2004, Weninger, Hungary
kisalfold.hu, 2009 august 17
* Sopron Cuvée 2007: wine of the year of the Sopron business association
www.kisalfold.hu
Decanter Hungary, 2008 november
* Cabernet Franc 2006: 17,40 points
* Merlot 2006: 17,10 points
Decanter Hungary, 2008 october
* Merlot-Cabernet 2005: 17,32 points
* Merlot-Cabernet 2004: 17,16 points
GENUSS.käse.pur, II/08
* Cheese and sparkling wine tasting:
Two times best cheese-combination with our Kékfrankos Rosé Brut
A la Carte, 2008 May
* "My price-performance hit up to 15 Euro" for importers: 90 points for Frettner 2004
"Retained nose, sourly red berries, very delicate, cool hint of eucalyptus; soft richness, discreet chocolate fruit, good bite, highly interesting, but currently not completely coming out of the snail-shell."
A la Carte, 02/2008
* "News from all over the world":
4 out of 5 stars for the Spern Steiner Kékfrankos 2005
"Fine, discreetly mineralic nose of lovage; lusty juvenile bite, hint of banana, behind it very mineralic, headstrong, but in his way definitely attractive."
Wine Enthusiast Magazine, May 2008 * Spern Steiner Kékfrankos 2003, $45 Rating: 87
2nd best Hungarian Red (together with Solus from Attila Gere)
Vinforum Denmark, April 2008 * Spern Steiner 2004: 91 points (best Hungarian wine)
Feinschmecker, February 2008 Red wine tasting Hungary: * Merlot-Cabernet 2004: „... An animating red wine with brilliance.“, 2nd position * Syrah 2004: „It almost sprawls of notes of concentrated dark berries, coffee and grinded pepper ...“, 4th position * Kékfrankos 2006: „The wine acts fresh, fruity and wild-spicy, shows brilliant notes of black currant and cherry, fine grinding and a gentle finish. Our best buy!“, 5th position
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If you would like to receive updates about changes and news at the Weingut Weninger, please send your e-mail address and language preference (English/German/Hungarian) to us at: balf@weninger.com
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