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Thummerer Winery is part of a family business,
what begun in 1984.
I wanted to broaden my knowledge beside
what I’ve learned in school
with some travelling to other countries
like Austria, Italy, French
and see how they do it.
After all those things I have learned there
I tried to adopt it to our circumstances,
financial capabilities
differently from the fashionable winemaking
with a different approach and started farming.
We were lucky,
from the beggining we went for the quality,
and when our first fruit bearings begun
we were close to the change of the regime.
It came with the softtening of the regime,
meant we could almost immadiately bottle
our first wines, beacuse
it became possible
for self-emlpoyed persons to do that.
Our possibilities begun together
with the change of the regime.
We sold our smaller cellars in Eger
and came here to Noszvaj.
This was an empty estate cellar.
As a result of the continuous vine planting
if there was a subsidy or not,
we went forward and thank God
the wine from the grapes
of these plantations we found our market.
I can almost say that the market
suctioning effect forced us
to plant more because
we didn’t wanted to buy.
We didn’t wanted to trouble
with someone elses grapes,
because we have felt that
quality only can be garantied
with our own grapes.
We have 100 hectare vineyard,
I think in our category
it is big within the small.
The 80% of our grapes are red
and 20% are white and
we work with a wide range of wines.
The most significant is probably the Egri Bikavér.
Not just for us but also for the Eger wine region.
This is not the most sellable one,
but we try to prioritize it
and focus on it
and make a name for this wine,
stregthen it.
There is a regulation which
declares from which varieties,
how many varieties can be used,
what average yield needed,
what is the harvesting time,
how long should it be fermented in the wood barrels
and beside of the barrel fermentation
the duration of the bottle fermentation.
The range is wide,
we can use a lot of different red grape varieties.
For the classical Bikavér in Eger
a minimum three varieties needed,
you have to blend these,
and the base have to be Kékfrankos.
This means a 40% Kékfrankos
the rest can be from different varieties.
During the classificitation
we created a Bikavér Superior category
which means a higher quality
and a lower average yield for making this vine
and five varieties have to be blended.
The Kékfrankos is the base also,
have to be 40 %
there the other rules are
that the Caberenet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon
can’t be more than 30% of the whole amount.
We don’t want to move the Bikavér
into a kind of Cabernet type
the Eger characteristic will show,
what in this case,
Kékfrankos or some other variety
like Blauburger, Pinot Noir.
The fermentation takes longer,
after the wood barrel fermentation
the bottle fermantation is longer.
After that it goes through an examination of a committee
and can get the superior classification.
It is very important
that when we find this wine suitable for the market,
the leader of the wine-growers community
takes a sample
we present it to the wine expert committee
of The Council of the Wine-Growers’ Association.
They blind taste it
and if it fits the requirements to be Bikavér
than it gets the marketing authorisation.
I want to mention our basic wine,
which is a cuvee,
it called „Bertram”,
I can say
that it is a little bit below
the quality of the Bikavér,
but it has a good value of money.
It can be found in many shopping chain stores,
it sells good.
I have to add
that we intetionally mark the hills
from where the good guality wine
will be harvested.
If nature doesn’t help our intetions,
maybe the wine name
that represent the good quality
won’t appear that year,
the wine that came from the better vineyards
will be put in a lower category of quality
and the grape that was going to go to Bikavér
goes into Bertram cuvee.
It can happen that in a vintage
we market it as Egri cuvee,
or in another year there is no Egri cuvee
because the vintage is so great
every drop is suitable
make great wines from them.
We sell most of our wines nationally,
we think this is our most important market,
mainly through wholesalers
most part goes to gastronomy,
some of our wines can be found in chainstores.
If we look at
what we can sell internationally,
how this 20% adds up,
I can say that mostly it is red wine.
I can only sell small amounts of white wine.
Previously the cheaper red wines
was much more called for,
but nowadays
in the last 1-2 years
it happens that we can sell really expensive wines,
not a lot but it is definitely notable.
After bottling we let the wine rest,
it never happens that from the bottling machine
machine it goes right to the consumers.
But for some time the bottle rest lying on its side,
the wine mature.
The lighter wines for two-three months,
the big wines after 1,5-2 years
of wood barrel fermenting
can stay 1-4 years further in the bottles
before reaching the market.
Because of this we lay a number of bottles,
wines mature in them,
and with that
we can manage a stable quality.
Our viticulture is the 100 hectare,
we also have empty lands
serves for the change,
if a plantation gets too old
we have a rested place where we start
the cultivation of new vine varieties.
We always pay attention to the market,
what are the demands.
We have Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot,
wines selected and named after the hills.
Our really great wine,
the cellars so called flag wine is
the 'Vili Papa'.
This is a barrique fermented wine,
with the purpose to be the cellars prestige wine.
The name is not a coincidence,
my grandchildren named it after me,
they thought and I also think that
under a name like that
not just any wine will be marketed.
I can say that it is among the wines in Hungary,
when people talk about great wines
it will be mentioned.
In international and national competitions
the different vintages of the wines
under this name was the most successful.
From time to time
we test the other wines
also white or red, because
we need some kind of controll
to feel that not only we think
that we produce nice wines,
we are on a good path,
but we want to get feedback from experts.
We find it very important
not just only talk about how our wines like this or like that
but we can prove that, yes!
It can stand on an international level
and when a customer, wholesaler come
we can look in his eyes and say that
this wine for this price
is worth it.
The proper backround for the viticulture
a technologocally well equipped winery.
We do everything to provide
the equipments, machines that meets
the standards of the era
and the present state of scientific knowledge
that contribute to high quality of the winery.
I can say that we have a technological backround
I would say in complete
if we place the cellar,
the wines and the wine-making technologies
in any large wine region in the world
wouldn’t be ashamed.
Lot of foreigners visit,
experts, wine makers
and when they see how our cellar is equipped,
what we work with
they get surprised
and say even their wineries
doesn’t have this kind of equipments.
We find it very important,
to use and utilize
what the developments of science and technology gives
to the wine making industry
throughout the world.
The winery includes a catering service,
we generate great tourism.
A member of our family business deals with this,
my daughter and my son in law.
I have to talk about white wines also.
We also make different types from that,
a bit lighter white wine
which includes Királyleányka,
it is not super reductive,
reductive type means it
produced in inox tanks until it goes to the bottle,
what happens quickly.
Beside that we find it important
to make for the Eger wine region
a regulated common brand
the Egri Csillag now for the second year.
We try to introduce it to the customers,
not just us, but the whole wine region.
Present it to the customers,
show it in exhibitions
and also with other marketing tools
reach the buyers, get their attention.
This is a cuvee and we intend it
to be the Bikavér’s pair.
This is a white cuvee
and the goal was that the Eger wine region’s
variabilities in terrain, climate,
soil and the vine varieties
that utilize it differently will be represented
by a good blending, cuvee,
so a nice, pleasant white wine
that gives a good experience
can be produced.
The point is that the varieties
which licensed in the Eger wine region should be used,
50% have to be from the vines
endemic in the Carpathian basin
and the other 50% can be from the world varieties.
When we felt that these regulation
needed in the Eger wine region,
in case of Bikavér or now in case of Egri Csillag
we tried to look the examples
set in other countries.
And say that a smaller wine region,
I mean globally
a smaller wine region
can stand out from the others
if we ensure the protection of origin,
in this way the region’s abilities can show
through the wine
and differentiate it from other wine regions,
other wines of the world.
Wine makers
who are interested in the producing of these wines,
but not just the wineries,
vine growers also,
founded a committee together,
which made these regulations
not just for the individuals,
through the individuals
the Council of the Wine-Growers’ Association
and everyone had to accept
and now the regulations have to respected
according to Brussel also.
But this will give
a sort of protection for our wines,
hopfully it will help
the wine region to remain.
Beside the origin protected wines
the cellars will always have individualities,
rarities of smaller amounts
not for a big market but making it with special caring.
They produce it for gourmets, experts,
maybe named after a hill
or selection of some kind.
When we say that it is a very special vintage
or such a beautiful wine or
a type of wood barrel
gave a wine something
that deserves to be highlighted
and with a special name,
in our case a special selection can be marketed.
We have a little section
like that from Kékfrankos,
Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah
and also the Tekenõháti Merlot,
Tekenõháti Pinot Noir,
I can also mention from the white wines
Chardonnay Batonázs, Chardonny Barrique.
I don’t want to forget
a very important category in our cellar.
We make sweet wines,
white wines and from red wines also.
From white wine we have a Muscat
what had nice market success,
from the red wines
we have the one named Tréfli
which started as a kosher wine,
but this didn’t worked out and
we had to do something with this red wine,
this sweet red wine
which differs philosophically
qualitatively from the sweet red wines
marketed in Hungary.
We had to market it in our own terms,
my friend told me
if you touch that it will become tréfli (not kosher),
and I told him you'll see
I will use this as a name.
This thought was quickly followed by action
and we started to market it in Hungary
and now I can say
it had an unbeliviable carreer
since then we made new vintages
I can say that we make it continuously with style
what we have started as a kosher wine.
I have to say with the sweet muscat
also differs from a regular sweet wine,
because the philosophy also completely different.
Mainly I recommend it to the people
who are not regural wine drinkers,
who are on the road to wine drinking,
young people
who are just getting to know the wine.
We don’t make big plans,
we feel like the cellar is working,
we could make it shinier from the outside
to show it what is inside,
but I think it is more important
what is inside and outside in the vineyards,
you don’t need a fancy palace,
or fancy winery just for the show.
But of course we have plans in developments.
We try to go on a way
that can improve the quality
and ensure it,
minimalize the risks.
And slowly if we can financially
afford we dream along.
We don’t stop the vine planting,
we have started to cut vines
planted long ago,
this 100 hectare is our own plantation
according to our visions.
All low cultivation,
low in yields
to be able to perform
for the high quality wine producing.
Refinement is going on right now.
In the meantime we bought a little distillery
it is not under the name of the winery,
just under my name and an ltd manages it.
With modernized machines that can provide
an updated traditional „Kisüsti” copper distiller system.
We produce from grapes, marc,
wine lees distillates and pálinka.
We also tried to produce brandy,
not without success
we won a prize in Austria at the Destillata,
and first prize in Gyula also with our brandy.
I would like to get into grape seed processing,
I think the opportunities what science
discovered in the seeds,
the beneficial physiological effects
have to be exploited
and get started the work,
we are getting information in this subject
we try to set it up.
The cellar improved greatly
when in 1995 I won “The Wine Maker of the Year” title
given by the Hungarian Wine Academy
and the wine estates.
I recieved it for the first time
in the Eger wine region,
this helped a lot,
both in reaching the market
and to get faith in what we do is right,
deserves recignition
and we have continued our work
with that in mind.
We were careful
not to strain this title,
keep the cellar’s standards and quality.
As a result in 2011
we have won
the “Wine Cellar of the Year” title.
Until the wine maker of the year title awards
only one persons work,
the winery of the year title,
also given by the wine academy
in every year,
goes to a collective of people.
In this case it it absolutely true,
because since then we got bigger
and more people work in the cellar,
in the vineyards, and around the wine
so now it is a team work.
It was a good feeling
to get the feedback
that from the 1995 wine maker of the year title
until 2011
our wines quality is arrived
to the country’s forefront.
The work that we do in the cellar,
or the structure of the whole winery
is on the right way.
It not worth to get off,
we should go along
and that is what we try to do.