The Kuenhof was first mentioned in the 12th century. At that time it was owned by the Bishop of Brixen. It is located south of Brixen, nestled in vineyards and close to the Brenner axis. Over 200 years ago, the great-grandfather Peter Pliger acquired the vineyard and it has been owned by the Pliger family ever since.
Careful restoration of the building and the old wine cellar began in 1991. This was followed step by step by the renewal of numerous historic vineyard terraces, some of which had lain fallow for decades. The crumbling dry stone walls were painstakingly rebuilt. As a result, the vineyard grew from its original 2.5 hectares to 6.5 hectares. Today, around 5000 litres of wine are produced on the Kuenhof with just under 7000 to 8000 vines per hectare, yielding an average of 38,000 bottles.
The aim of Barbara, Peter and son Simon Pliger is to achieve a balanced symbiosis between man, cultivated plants and nature. Their involvement with sustainable cultivation began in the early years of their winemaking activities. Initially, no weedkillers were used. This allowed natural soil vegetation to develop. Step by step, synthetic agents were subsequently banned from the farm.
The Kuenhof's grapes grow at an altitude of 550 to 890 meters on the slopes of the Eisack Valley. They thrive on terraced vineyards, some of which are on extremely steep slopes. The work in the vineyard is all done by hand. Precision and care extend from the vineyards to the cellar. The grapes are gently pressed and fermentation takes place with natural yeasts. Historic and listed cellar rooms provide the ideal environment for the maturing process of the four single-varietal white wines. All varieties are matured in large acacia barrels as well as in stainless steel tanks. After five to seven months on the fine lees, the wines are bottled in the spring of the following year.
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