OCTOBER 2024 - A Changing of Seasons

THE WINES OF FRANZ & PETRA WENINGER

As the temperature outside begins to wax and wane, with the colors of Autumn signaling the approach of a colder season to come, our minds and bodies begin to shift our tastes and desires for seasonally appropriate food and drink. The tomato season has come to a close, the fall and winter vegetables have taken root, and the abundance of orchard fruits now plentiful for a long season ahead. We start thinking about cooking with heat- roasting and braising; pickling various fruits and vegetables for the larder, etc, etc. There is also a natural shift with the wines we tend to enjoy with the seasons. For this month’s Red & White wine club, we are thrilled to be focusing on the deftly skilled fruits of labor from Franz and Petra Weninger, who farm in Mittelburgenland, Austria and also in Hungary. Having been long time admirers of their work, we are ecstatic to offer three distinct wines, appropriate for the change in season. 

Franz & Petra Weninger in their vineyards

WENINGER

In the town chronicles of Horitschon, the first mention of the name Weninger at Florianigasse 11 is in 1828. The Weninger family worked a polyculture farm, quite typical for Mittelburgenland: there were cows, 25 hectares of arable land, and five hectares planted to vines. Franz Ludwig and Martina Weninger took over the family farm in 1982, just 3 years after their son Franz Reinhard was born. Franz Ludwig became one of the pioneers in Austria for emphasizing grape quality in farming practices. From the onset, he understood the importance of practicing organic viticulture while also looking to preserve the local grape varieties. In addition, he opted for long, slow maceration periods, allowing for his ferments to develop into soulful, complex wines.

Franz Reinhard Weninger was born in 1979 and grew up on his parents’ farm in Horitschon, which is situated a few sparse kilometers from Lake Neusiedl. It was here where he first began to understand the beauty and calm of working with the land, under his parents’ tutelage. He gained first hand experience of the art of winemaking with his father, who was already considered a master with red wines and barrique aging. After attending oenology school in Klosterneuburg and graduating, he spent some time abroad, further expanding his knowledge with viticulture and what it means to be a great steward of the land. Upon returning to Austria In 2000, he took over the responsibilities with the family estate in Balf near Sopron on the Hungarian side of the lake. In doing this, he continued his parents' project, who already in 1997 had bought vineyards in the small village of Balf, close to the Austrian border. He built on his father’s approach to farming by implementing biodynamic practices, further evolving the health and vitality of the soils. In 2011, he took over the operations at the main winery in Horitschon as well, where he oversees all of the family operations with his partner Petra Gratzer-Weninger. Petra gave birth to their two children, first in 2009 and again in 2013. In total, they farm 12 hectares in southern Hungary, 25 hectares in Sopron-Balf and roughly 28 hectares now in Horitschon.

The Wines

Feherburgundi

2020 - Pinot Blanc

The vineyards have a light slope eastward towards the lake. The vines were planted in 1999 on gneiss and schist soils, very compressed with slate. It’s one of the earlier picked sites where the fruit undergoes a slow, direct press with must oxidation. There is a good amount of sediment left with the juice which then goes into various sized large barrels (varying from 500L to 3000L & 4000L) in addition to 7000L stainless steel tanks. It is left to age for 4 to 5 months on the lees before being bottled. It is delicately scented (think wild floral meadows in bloom) with notes of lemon balm, dewey grass, and hints of citrus zest that provides a precise, firm structure and salty mineral undertones. It is vibrant and vertically pointed with its thirst quenching acidity.

Rosza Petsovits XXII

2021 - Zweigelt/Syrah/Blaufränkisch/Pinot Noir/Merlot

It’s a story of Hungary, of Austria and of Burgenland and the culture of wine here. Franz Reinhard’s grandmother Rosza was born in Horitschon, Hungary in 1921, the same year it became an Austrian town and remains to this day. This part of Hungary has seen a history of German language spoken for the past 400 years, a bit more open minded than the rest of Hungary. It is a direct press juice with lots of skins present, on the lees and allowing for malolactic to proceed, for stability. It spends a bit of time in stainless steel and wood but for a shorter period. It has this freedom- it is integrated and different from the other cuvées Franz works with. The syrah provides the herbs and spice notes, the blaufränkisch on sandy soils exudes open arms and expresses love and warmth. This wine presents a deep connection to different places- Balf & Sopron in Hungary where there is schist and mica and gneiss; Horitschon & Ritzing in Mittelburgenland with its limestone, loamy and clay soils. 

Hockäcker

2021 - Blaufränkisch

This site in Horitschon is made up of loamy soils but with less clay present than Dürrau. There is great balance here with water retention in the soil providing a bit more body and there is always incredible structure due to the cool soil which provides acidity. The vines are 40 to 55 years old and this site is also one of the earliest harvested which allows for the terroir to really shine. It shows a deep core of red berry fruit, delicate wild forest berries with notes of cherry, spice and tobacco. It is fresh and precise on the palate, complex but without opulence. Its density and concentration allow for an ideal situation to age the wine, albeit it exudes vivacity in its youth as well.