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In the wine-growing region of Eisenberg in Austrian Burgenland, two well-known wineries are closing down. With the Polczer Winery, even the largest operation in the region is on the brink of closure. Hans Polczer (picture), who previously cultivated 20 hectares, will return his leased land and will no longer harvest grapes. The 70-year-old cannot find successors; his children are engaged in other professions. The currently stored 200,000 liters of wine are to be sold gradually. He hopes that local winemakers will take over part of his vineyards and announces generous offers for this. He views the situation in the small wine-growing region critically: "Perhaps we have looked too much at the past and too little into the future," he said in an interview with ORF.
The situation is different for the Schützenhof winery of the Faulhammer family. The 39-year-old Markus Faulhammer announced two years ago that he intended to sell the modern winery and continue working as a small winemaker (wein.plus reported). Meanwhile, he sees his future in the social sector. As no buyer was found for the buildings, all equipment, and five hectares of vineyards for 3.45 million euros, the winery is now being auctioned. The starting price is 858,000 euros, which is half of the estimated value of the property. Additionally, the entire inventory can be acquired for around 200,000 euros. If the new owner does not purchase the inventory, it will be auctioned separately. Whether the wine production will continue or not is the decision of the new owner.
Recently, the Regional Wine Committee Eisenberg announced that the category "Reserve" for wines would be abolished. Instead, the regional wines will be marketed as Eisenberg DAC, while the previous reserve wines will be marketed as local and vineyard wines to emphasize their origin.
(al / Source: burgenland.orf.at)