Our Iconic Vineyards: Ördögárok

A rolling sea of vineyards in a stunning valley basin – an exceptional terroir with remarkable potential. This is the Ördögárok vineyard in the Villány wine district, reclaimed from nature through monumental effort by local winemakers in the early 2000s...

“There I stood immobile, still and muted,
Feeling that my feet were deeply rooted,
Reeling in the sweetly frenzied sadness
Of eternal Nature’s lovely gladness.”

(Translated by Emil Delmar)

Sound familiar? These lofty words come from The Tisza, a poem by Sándor Petőfi. Even if such eloquence doesn’t flow from every pen or tongue, the miracle of nature captivates us all. We adore dramatic cliffs, wild (and not entirely safe) rainforests, deserts shimmering in a thousand colors, endless oceans, and palm-fringed beaches. Yet many of us experience the same lyrical mood when walking through vineyard landscapes. Though not purely nature’s own creation – shaped instead by human hands, sometimes aided by machines, sometimes by raw physical effort – a carefully cultivated vineyard can be just as breathtaking as untamed wilderness. Especially when we know what lies beneath the soil, what rain nourishes the vines, and what sun ripens the grapes that, through the wondrous collaboration of nature and humankind, ultimately become wine.

And to experience all this, we don’t even have to travel beyond Hungary’s borders. The country boasts many exceptional vineyards, several of which have become iconic over the past decades. Among them is the Ördögárok vineyard in the Villány wine district – a site with only about twenty years of renewed history but, if predictions hold true, one we’ll hear much more about in the future.

Sixty hectares of picturesque beauty

Nestled between Szársomlyó Hill and the Villány Mountains, at the border of Villány and Nagyharsány, lies a 60-hectare valley basin whose name, Ördögárok (“Devil’s Ditch”), comes from an old legend. Today, it’s hard to imagine that just over twenty years ago, these steep slopes were covered in dense forest and nearly impenetrable thickets. There had once been vineyards here, last harvested perhaps in the 1950s – something rediscovered when, in the early 2000s, six Villány winemakers joined forces to reclaim and cultivate the land.

During the socialist era, productivity was the driving principle across all sectors, including viticulture. When it became clear that large-scale mechanized cultivation was impossible here, the state farm abandoned the area. Over the decades, weeds overtook the vines and the old roads disappeared into the undergrowth; by the century’s end, tall acacias and hardy tree of heaven swayed in the winds of the Ördögárok.

A monumental struggle

Yet nothing escapes the notice of a dedicated winemaker. Always seeking exceptional sites, they explore and investigate – and so it was that Ördögárok’s promising aspect and elevation drew attention. Despite being covered in forest, curiosity sparked: what if they looked closer? Driven more by instinct than certainty, Attila Gere became the pioneer, purchasing land here in 2001. He was soon joined by Zoltán Günzer, Ede Tiffán, Tamás Günzer, Krisztián Sauska, and József Bock.

Together, these six investors decided to rehabilitate the entire basin and install a drainage system, entrusting much of the project planning to Zoltán Günzer.

“The whole area had belonged to the state farm. We found old concrete cisterns they’d used to mix pesticides and even traces of a horse stable, suggesting the vineyard had once been worked with horses – for as long as it was worked at all. There was also a road from the rim down to the bottom, likely for horse-drawn carts,” recalls Günzer.

During the two years of restoration, they encountered surprises. Once the forest was cleared, the true terrain emerged: the basin turned out to be 16 meters deep with steep slopes angled at 20–25%.

“In the first year of planting, we were hit by such torrential rain we had to spray by helicopter. It wasn’t easy. We quickly realized that on such extreme terrain, you simply can’t grow vines without a proper drainage system. It took three years to build, but we did it. Honestly, I don’t even know how we managed to gather the enormous funds it required. I doubt we could do it again today,” says Günzer.

Ördögárok’s terroir

Ördögárok is a single, contiguous 60-hectare site lying at 150–250 meters above sea level. Standing at its highest point – and it’s worth stopping there, as the view is breathtaking – you see it truly is a vast enclosed valley. Thanks to this “basin effect,” it has its own microclimate: warm, humid air lingers here, resulting in higher heat accumulation than neighboring vineyards. Grapes reliably ripen to full maturity, producing fruit rich in extract and high in tannins.

The soil is clay loess overlying limestone and dolomite bedrock, containing magnesium not directly available to the vines.

“Due to the high lime content, we planted lime-tolerant rootstocks, and looking back over nearly two decades, it was the right choice. The berries are generally small and concentrated, yields are very low – about 0.5–1 kg of grapes per vine. All this makes it ideal for producing great wines,” explains Günzer.

Home to the great French varieties

Most winemakers in Ördögárok believed the site favored French varieties. So today it is planted mainly with Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah. But there are exceptions: Bock Winery also has Pinot Noir, while the Tiffán family planted Portugieser and Kadarka. Each winery produces single-vineyard wines: Bock and Gere Attila bottle an Ördögárok Villányi Franc, Günzer Tamás and Tiffán make Merlot (the latter marketed as Elysium), Sauska offers Cabernet Sauvignon, and the Günzer Family Estate creates Bordeaux-style blends.

In Günzer Zoltán’s view, Ördögárok wines shouldn’t be released before they’re four years old. Before launching a new cuvée, they hold vertical tastings of past vintages – and experience shows these wines age beautifully and have impressive aging potential.

A joy to behold, a pleasure to taste

The wineries owning plots in Ördögárok take pride in this terroir and sometimes organize vineyard tours for visitors. If you’re exploring the Villány wine district, consider joining one of these guided walks! The landscape is striking in every season – and with a bit of luck, you might also get to sample the wine born of this exceptional place.