Salzl Seewinkelhof

Salzl Seewinkelhof – Winemaking tradition in Burgenland

The family’s winemaking tradition has deep roots. The Salzls have been growing wine since 1840. Back then still as mixed farming, Heribert Salzl, father of Josef and grandfather of Christoph, reset the focus and, as one of the few and relatively early, concentrated entirely on viticulture. While Heribert mainly produced white and sweet wines, he was already able to attract attention with several gold medals. In the 1980s, Josef laid the foundation for today’s success by reorienting towards red wine. With the 2000 vintage, at his very first attempt, Josef Salzl immediately made it into the top 50 red wines of Austria. Since 2005, son Christoph has also been fully on board. He initially entered with his first own wine, SACRIS. A varietal Zweigelt, which still stands at the top of the quality pyramid of the estate and impressively shows what great wines this native variety can produce. Close exchange, reflection and discussion are important elements for successful and honest collaboration.

Location of the Salzl Seewinkelhof winery

The modern winery lies among the vines, as the address already suggests. When your gaze sweeps across the incomparable natural landscape of the Neusiedler See–Seewinkel National Park, in Austria’s easternmost federal state, it becomes clear that in Illmitz not only the vines feel at home. Grandfather Heribert, father Josef and son Christoph with their family also enjoy life here. The decision in favor of viticulture was a very deliberate one for all three of them. They love their homeland as much as their vocation. The Salzls see it as their mission and goal to reflect the climate and openness of the region in their products. While the classic wines are matured in stainless steel tanks, the reserve wines age in barrique barrels. Winemaking here is not just practiced craftsmanship. It is joy, experience and the finest intuition that guide the Salzls to find the ideal tuning for each variety and each vintage.

Salzl Seewinkelhof’s diversity of wines

At the Salzls, their passion for their white, red and sweet wines is absolutely tangible on the palate. While a large part is devoted to red wine – alongside national and international varieties especially Zweigelt – the winery also offers the full range of Burgenland wine culture at the highest level, from fresh-fruity to complex mineral white wines and noble sweet predicate wines.

Salzl Seewinkelhof’s sun-ripened delights

Countless hours of sunshine ensure incomparable fruit and concentration. Even the globally rare Botrytis cinerea, a noble rot fungus indispensable for the production of noble sweet wines such as Trockenbeerenauslesen, is found around Lake Neusiedl. With this selection, it is hard to decide on just one variety. That is why at the Salzls all vines are carefully matched to soils, climate and vineyard sites and matured according to their character. Rigorous selection and meticulous vineyard management are a matter of course. The result is a high-quality and colorful range of wines in which every palate is sure to find the right one. Salzl Seewinkelhof’s vines in the vineyards:

• Zweigelt
• Chardonnay
• Cabernet Sauvignon
• Grüner Veltliner
• Pinot Blanc
• Syrah
• Merlot
• Sämling
• Bouvier
• Sauvignon Blanc
• Welschriesling
• Gelber Muskateller

Salzl Seewinkelhof’s soils

Each vine requires its own soil structure. Here on Lake Neusiedl one mainly finds sand, which in the Domkapitel site, for example, has been deposited in dune-like formations, permeable gravel, predominant in the Lüss site, and nutrient-rich, weathered dark steppe black earth in the former shoreline area of the Pannonian Sea.

Salzl Seewinkelhof’s teamwork

The family is supported by their long-standing team, which does excellent work in the vineyards, the cellar and sales, and shares the common philosophy. As in a large family, trust, responsibility, reliability and togetherness are lived here every day.