Wines and Spirits

“WE NEED WINE LOVERS WHO FEEL AND UNDERSTAND THE WORK, THE COMPOSITIONS, SINCE GOOD WINES ARE FINELY ORCHESTRATED WORKS OF ART. GOOD WINES ARE SILENT AND SOUND CLEAR JUST LIKE A GREGORIAN CHANT CHERISHING THE SILENCE OF THE CHURCH CELLARS.”
“GRAPE IS A WONDERFUL PLANT. IT IS ABLE TO SURVIVE HARD TIMES, GIVING RELIEF, FAITH, JOY, CHEERFULNESS AND PLEASURE TO THE EXHAUSTED VINE-GROWER. “

MIHÁLY FIGULA – quoted from 'Winemaker of the Year' in 2000, which is the highest title given Hungary.

You can be the guest of the following Balaton Uplands premium wineries, who have won recently gold, silver and bronze medals at prestigious international competitions, for example in Bordeaux, Bruxelles ,London or Paris .Their sommeliers will guide You into the joy of 6 -7 wine-tasting every evening in our holiday program. These exceptional wine –tour nights are not available for individual tourists.

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Swedish reference of Balaton region wine:

Did you know that the Swedish engineer and wine-lover, Mr Christer Sandahl from Smaland bought a vineyard in 2004 at lake Balaton, in Badacsony, established a winery here , and won 2 gold prizes in London Decanter World Wine Awards in 2013. His wines are also in Hugh Johnson’s world-famous wine pocketbook with honorable mention.

Michelin-starred restaurants in Germany and Austria buy premium wines of Balaton-region.

Wine – just as bread – has been in cultic connection with mankind for two thousand years around Balaton. The words “szőlő” (meaning “grape”) and “bor” (meaning “wine”) are also included in the names of several settlements in the Balaton Uplands area, for example Szőlősgyörök, Borszörcsök, or Balatonszőlős.

Nowadays the Balaton Uplands winery owners know that they cannot compete with the huge volume of the new-world wine-makers, but they do not even want to. They see their future in producing small quantities of top quality wines.

What gives the wine of the Balaton region absolute premium quality?

1. An ultimately favourable microclimate for grape growing
  • the biggest lake of Central Europe evens out temperature fluctuations and thus protects grape from freezing
  • grape grows on the southern slopes of volcanic hills rich in minerals and sediments of the former Pannonian Sea
  • average annual sunshine exceeds 2000 hours
  • Mediterranian summer heat is mellowed in the evening by cool air currents flowing towards the lake, due to the dense forests encompassing the wine region. Daytime heat adds fire to these wines, and the cool nights account for their savoury fruitiness and the crisp qualities of their levelled acidity.

2. Tradition of grape growing has been continuous for 2200 years in the Balaton region. Archeology finds provides evidence for viticulture in ancient Celtic and Roman times.

It is the felicitous encounter of the natural resources, the land and the 2000-year-old viticulture that make our vineyards so beautiful, regardless of where you enjoy the view of Lake Balaton and the landscape surrounding it.