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In and around Bolzano, the first organic wineries in South Tyrol have emerged. They are characterised not only by their basic ecological attitude, but also by a pronounced self-confidence. Which is why their wines all have great originality. Moreover, their turning away from chemicals has encouraged many other producers in South Tyrol to take a greener path in wine production.


At the end of the 1970s, Rainer Loacker, father of Hayo & Franz Josef Loacker, decided to take up viticulture and it was clear to him from the beginning that he wanted to do it biodynamically. Actually, nothing spoke in favour of this decision. There was hardly any practical experience with organic viticulture. Instead of approval, newcomers tended to be ridiculed by their colleagues, and economically for Rainer Loacker it was also an exchange of a secure existence with the imponderables of a completely new challenge.

As co-owner of a successful confectionery factory, he was actually well provided for. However, a serious illness made him fundamentally rethink and change his life. He chose viticulture and because he successfully conquered his illness with homeopathic methods, he also wanted to apply these methods in his work as a winemaker. "A lot," says his son Hayo Loacker, who is now in charge of the winery, "he had to find out by trial and error back then and sometimes the results were not necessarily satisfying." Out of curiosity, I too bought a bottle of Loacker wine from time to time in the organic shop back then. 30 years is a long time, so I really can't remember what those wines tasted like back then. They certainly didn't make me an organic wine lover at that time. "They certainly weren't top wines back then," says Hayo Loacker. "In the organic sector, some experience still had to be gained at that time in order to produce really special qualities."

In my opinion, Rainer Loacker's work deserves the greatest respect above all because he took this difficult path and did not throw in the towel instead of switching to the safe (= conventional) side. He consistently stuck to his decision once it was made. And the results in terms of wine quality and the economic success that has come about in the meantime prove him right. What leaves the Loacker winery today is rightly no longer ("only") in organic shops, but in many well-stocked wine shops, not only in South Tyrol, and every bottle deserves attention in terms of quality and individuality. In addition to its South Tyrolean estates in Sankt Justina near Bolzano and in the Eisack Valley, the Loacker winery now owns two more vineyards in Tuscany - Corte Pavone in Montalcino and Valdifalco in the Maremma. Rainer Loacker now leaves the work on the Italian wineries entirely to his sons Hayo and Franz Josef. But even in his old age he can't leave it alone and a few years ago he acquired a vineyard in Styria, which - just like the Tuscan estates - is of course also farmed biodynamically.

Opening hours are Monday to Friday from 8.00 - 12.30 and from 14- 17.30. Every Thursday at 15.00 there is a winery tour with cellar visit and tasting, please book in advance. Cost 12 euros.

The wines of the Schwarhof in the Wein-Plus wine guide

The wines of Corte Pavone in the Wein-Plus wine guide

The wines of Valdifalco in the Wine-Plus-Wineguide

The prices of the wines from Schwarhof range from 7 to 19 euros.


As soon as the entrance gate of the Nusserhof closes behind you, the world is a different place. Before, you were struggling through hectic traffic, but from one moment to the next you are surrounded by peace and well-tended nature.

Nature is the most important thing for Elda and Heinrich Mayr. A good 20 years ago, they were one of the first organic winegrowers in South Tyrol. At a time when this was still considered a crackpot idea and it took a lot of strength and steadfastness to continue on this path. But persistently swimming against the tide was nothing new for Heinrich Mayr. "For a long time, the existence of the Nusserhof was on a knife's edge and I spent my whole childhood in uncertainty as to whether we wouldn't get the news from one day to the next that we would have to leave the farm."

The industrial estate surrounding the farm was approaching inexorably and wanted to annex the green oasis of Nusserhof. The Nusserhof was saved by an uncle of Heinrich Mayr, Josef Mayr - Nusser. However, only after his death. Josef Mayr - Nusser refused to take the oath of allegiance to Hitler during the fascist era, was sent to a concentration camp for it and later died of the consequences. None of the parties represented in the Bolzano City Council could ignore the argument that the place of work of such a steadfast man must be protected, and so the Nusserhof still exists today.

Besides the owners, discerning wine drinkers can also consider themselves lucky about this state of affairs. Provided that "demanding" also means "full of character". For the wines of the Nusserhof are not "delicious", but demanding and idiosyncratic growths. And they need time to mature. This is true for the strong red wines from Lagrein and Teroldego, but also for the Vernatsch and for the white wine from the almost forgotten South Tyrolean variety Blatterle. With the latter and also with the Teroldego, one should not be irritated by the fact that one only says "B....", the other "T..." on the label and that the wines are officially declared as table wines. There are bureaucratic reasons for this, which would go beyond the scope of this article. The quality of both wines makes the official declaration seem unimportant anyway.

You can convince yourself of this by visiting the Nusserhof, which will be a pleasant and lasting memory not only in terms of the quality of the wines produced here. The loving care of this gem in the middle of Bolzano's industrial area is not limited to the beauty of the garden and the rows of vines, but is also evident in the preservation of the cultural heritage and the documentation of history. In addition, music plays a major role at the Nusserhof. Both Elda and Heinrich Mayr are passionate musicians who like to share their passion with their guests and organise sophisticated concerts in a small circle.

Otherwise, visitors are welcome by appointment by phone (there is no computer here), except between 12 and 2 p.m. - lunchtime is sacred here! And you should book well in advance, because according to Elda Mayr: "When I do a guided tour and a wine tasting, I need time to prepare it - just as our wines need time to develop."

The wines of the Nusserhof in the Wein-Plus wine guide.

Prices ex farm for private customers: From 15 euros to 80 euros


"I want to bring calmness to the wines with my work" was one of Urban Plattner's first sentences during my visit to Ebnerhof. What Urban Plattner meant by this was immediately clear to me after the first sip of his Malvasier, a dry South Tyrolean red wine speciality. A wine with a fine, distinctive and at the same time unobtrusive bouquet, characterised in the mouth by fine, delicate austerity, without the cloying, satiating melting that I had known from wines of this variety until now. A wine without distracting "background noise", clear and direct.

The same was repeated with the Vernatsch. Many Vernatsch drinkers would have been frightened by its age. It was a 2010 that had not even been bottled in May 2014! Spontaneously fermented on the skins for six weeks, it presented itself crystal clear, pure and with juicy freshness after three and a half years. And the full-bodied Merlot/Lagrein cuvée 'Merleum' also brought its concise, intense fruit straightforwardly and without any heaviness into the glass. And even the normally rather "loud" Sauvignon Blanc, of which Urban Plattner put the 2012 vintage, not yet bottled in May 2014, on the tasting table, showed a different face here. Those who expect Sauvignon Blanc to be heavy with paprika, elderberry and cassis notes will be disappointed, but those who are looking for a concise wine that is at peace with itself have found one here. "Calm" and "clarity" are exactly the right words for these wines.

However, Urban Plattner takes a certain economic risk in producing this type of wine. Because apart from the fact that they are not cheap due to their complex production, they are very different from the wines that until recently his father, Johannes Plattner, produced at Ebnerhof. The Ebnerhof wines were never mainstream. But his father was not as radical as his son. At least not in terms of wine style - but in other respects he was.

Johannes Plattner is one of the organic pioneers in South Tyrol. He switched to organic farming as early as 1990. At that time it was still a big risk - there was no market worth mentioning for organic wines and with the main variety Vernatsch, which is sensitive to Oidium and Peronospera, it was not easy for him in the vineyard either. Johannes Plattner persevered and his son is taking this foundation one step further towards biodynamics. "I want to intervene as little as possible in the wine in the cellar and that is only possible with really healthy grapes, which in turn can only be produced if there is a certain harmony in the vineyard. I want to come as close as possible to this with biodynamic work. This is a huge task for me and everything is only at the beginning," says Urban Plattner.

If the wines described above are only the beginning, there is still a lot to expect from the Ebnerhof and I am sure that in the future many of those wine lovers who are interested in truly exceptional wines will drive up to the magnificent steep slopes with a dreamlike view in Leitach.

The Ebnerhof wines in the Wein-Plus wine guide

Prices range from 10 to 22 euros. Visitors are always welcome by appointment.


Martin Gojer is a young winemaker who is trying out new things at his Pranzegg winery. At first, you can't make heads or tails of the names of his wines. They are called 'Caroline', 'Jacob', 'Campill' and 'Quirein'. Except for 'Campill', whose name refers to the location of the winery in Kampill opposite Bolzano, the names tell us little about the origin of the wines and the whole thing seems at first glance as if Martin Gojer wants nothing to do with South Tyrolean traditions and/or wants to show that he is something very special and better.

The not exactly low prices of the wines seem to confirm this impression. At second glance, however, Martin Gojer's attachment to his South Tyrolean homeland and the origin of his wines becomes clear. The 'Quirein' is a wine mainly made from the typical, autochthonous South Tyrolean variety Lagrein, named after a vineyard site in Bolzano where Martin Gojer's grandmother used to live; the 'Campill' consists mainly of old Vernatsch varieties such as Klein-, Mitter-, Grau- and Edelvernatsch; and the Rosé 'Jacob' is named after the little church of St. Jacob, which 'protects' the vineyard on the Bolzano valley floor where the Lagrein grapes for this wine grow. Only in the case of the white wine cuvée 'Caroline', made from Chardonnay, Viognier, Manzoni Bianco and Sauvignon, did Martin Gojer think primarily of himself or his family when naming the wine, and named it after his daughter.

In terms of taste, the wines are very different from most South Tyrolean wines. But this is mainly because Martin Gojer, unlike most of his colleagues, is not in a hurry to sell them and gives the wines the time they need to develop all that the soils on the hill in Kampill and on the valley floor in Bolzano and the biodynamic cultivation give them.

The wines are sold when they are ripe for it, and that varies from year to year. For example, Martin Gojer only released his 2010 'Quirien' for sale in the summer of 2014 - just under a year after the 2011; the Vernatsch usually only comes onto the market after about three years; the same applies to the white wine cuvée; only in the case of the rosé does Martin Gojer make an exception and sell the wine in the year following the harvest.

Here, it is not the market requirements - most customers (especially restaurants) always want everything as young as possible - that determine when the wine is sold, but rather how much time Martin Gojer thinks the wines need. All wines are fermented spontaneously and not filtered. "I want wines that are expressive, exciting and mysterious." That he lives up to this claim is impressively demonstrated here.

In the future, friends of this type of wine will find some more interesting growths at Martin Gojer. In 2015, a new vineyard was leased in Unterplatten on the Ritten. From these sites there will be a Vernatsch from old vines, as well as a Traminer and a little Merlot, from which a Rose will be pressed.

The winery is currently in the conversion phase to official organic certification.

The wines of the Pranzegg Winery in the Wein-Plus Wine Guide

Prices range from 10 to 22 euros. Visitors are always welcome by appointment.

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