Kracher

The vineyard Kracher is located directly on Lake Neusiedl, in the very east of Austria, where the Hungarian border is not far. 

The Kracher Winery from Lake Neusiedl

Since 2007, the winery, which covers a good 35 hectares, has been managed jointly by Gerhard Kracher and his wife Yvonne. Gerhard Kracher is a trained winemaker. He gained his experience from his grandfather, from his father Alois and during several stays abroad. 

On the eastern shore of Lake Neusiedl stretches the Seewinkel National Park, which is a unique natural paradise of continental, Pannonian climate. Vines find here particularly suitable conditions for their growth: hot, dry summers, very cold winters, a spring full of rain, a long but sunny-mild autumn and the peculiarity that probably exists only once in the world: Lake Neusiedl with its exceedingly large water surface noticeably mitigates the summer drought. The lake also creates dense evening fog in the fall, which lingers until the morning and is only then gradually dispersed by the sun. Where car owners can already see rust growing on their vehicles, the winegrowers from the Kracher Winery are happy about these conditions. They are perfectly suited for the formation of the mold"Botrytis cinerea", which makes the noble rot for the noble sweet wines possible.

Noble dessert wines from the Kracher Winery

We speak of noble rot when the grapes remain on the vines beyond full ripeness and are then attacked by the aforementioned noble rot fungus Botrytis cinerea. Its spores grow through the berry skin and make it porous. As a result, the water contained in the berry evaporates, it dries out and shrinks like raisins. Fortunately, this rather unsightly process leads to something very beautiful: aroma and sweetness condense and intensify. The musts obtained from these grapes are correspondingly concentrated, with a sugar content increased to 25-45%. The quality is quite respectable, as evidenced not least by more than 80 points from Robert Parker's Wine Advocate. 

These grape varieties are grown at Weingut Kracher: 

• Chardonnay
• Welschriesling