The 400-year-old family tradition of Count Ivan Batthyány and his wife, Countess Carolin Batthyány, was revived in 2015. Their small boutique winery is now characterised by selective production of wines on a small terroir and by greatly reduced volume yields.
Under the aegis of Rudolf Krizan, vines were exposed to scattered orchards that had not been worked for 30 years and whose soils were bursting with vigour. The microclimate and mineral soils produce a distinctive type of wine. The "Rindler" site was already cultivated and appreciated around 1700 by the ancestors of the current owner. This is evidenced by the "Vineyard Chapel", which can still be found in situ, built at that time by Àdám II Count Batthyány. During that time there seem to have been countless storms, which often destroyed the harvest.
In order to protect his favourite wines, the count built this chapel dedicated to the weather saints. Currently, the winery has three and a half hectares of vineyards, of which two and a half hectares are planted with Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, and one hectare mainly with Blaufränkisch and Merlot. This year Furmint will also be bottled for the first time. The climate of southern Burgenland is characterised by its unique geographical location - Austria lies on the same latitude as Burgundy.
The vineyards around Rechnitz consist of deep primary rock weathered soils with a clay-humus layer. The vineyards are small in area, with numerous old fruit and chestnut trees in between. This very old cultivation structure hosts highly endangered insects such as the wood bee, the largest native bee species. It finds the perfect habitat in the vineyards.
Therefore, the family has set a great goal and manages its vineyards organically to produce modern top quality wines in harmony with nature.
