From Anna Balls to spa resorts, from light summer wines to complex heavyweights, this region boasts something for everyone. And who wouldn’t remember the strange reddish soils around Csopak? They are a strange formation that once seen is never forgotten. Sandstone is one of the components of many renowned wine regions around the world and is often what ensures the richness and backbone of their wines. Wines from here are characterised by great structure, vibrant, enticing acidity and restrained aromatics, Balaton wines to the core. Wines are predominantly white, but there are increasing amounts of Kékfrankos and Cabernet Sauvignon being produced too.

History

For time immemorial, this area has been a wine-producing region. Villa Romana, a third-century building dating from the time of Emperor Probius was unearthed between Csopak and Veszprém, on the outskirts of Nemesvámos, in today’s Balácapuszta. The ruins are decorated with grape motifs, while their murals depict harvest scenes. After the conquest, the area became the property of the Kárász tribe. Paloznak in the wine district was the first viticultural settlement in Hungary whose name is known. King Stephen donated a “szőlős”, or viner, from Paloznak to serve the convent in Veszprémvölgy, which was founded around 1018. The Hungarian word “szőlős” means a serf charged with tending to the vines, the Latin equivalent of which is “vinitor”. Founder, Andrew I donated twenty houses (mausio) to the Tihany Abbey in its foundation charter.

According to data from 1082, the Bishop of Veszprém also owned vineyards in Csopak. In 1211, the vineyards of Füred and its surroundings ended up the property of Tihany Abbey for centuries. Like elsewhere in the country, its prospering viticulture fell into decline under the Turkish occupation, with both the number of grape growers and the area under vine decreasing. The 18th century brought another boom, while in the 1750s, the region was among the first in the country to establish wine communities, which regulate viticulture and winemaking. By the 19th century, Füred had become the capital of Lake Balaton, where the nobility from both the county and elsewhere in the country held their balls, meaning wine from Füred ran out pretty quickly.

Various churches had estates in the wine district, and in the 1880s, Bishop Ranolder of Veszprém used to supply the wines from their Csopak estate of 50 cadastral acres to Vienna. It belonged to the Badacsony wine district for a long time and only became an independent wine district from 1959, with the Tihany peninsula being added in 1997. Harvest festivals live on around Lake Balaton as old traditions, with numerous poems, novels, songs and even films capturing the harvest festivities. Fortunately, many old buildings have survived, from simple peasant cellars to well-appointed noble mansions. Increasing numbers of them are being renovated and can be visited as part of various wine tours.

Geographical location

The wine district stretches along the northern shore of Lake Balaton, from Zánka to Balatonalmádi. Geographically, Balatonfüred-Csopak is part of the Balaton Highlands.

It includes the following towns and villages: Alsóörs, Aszófő, Balatonakali, Balatonalmádi, Balatoncsicsó, Balatonfüred, Balatonszőlős, Balatonudvari, Csopak, Dörgicse, Felsőörs, Lovas, Mencshely, Monoszló, Óbudavár, Örvényes, Paloznak, Pécsely, Szentantalfa, Szentjakabfa, Tagyon, Tihany, Vászoly and Zánka.

Soil

Its soils are varied. Forest soils overlay crystalline shale, Permian red sandstone and Quaternary loess, while rendzina soils formed on Triassic limestone, dolomite and marl. The characteristic pronounced acidity of the Csopak and Balatonfüred wines reflects the effect of this calcareous soil.

The total vineyard area of the wine district is 6,340 hectares, of which 5,792 are 1st class. The actual area under vine is currently 2,143 hectares, of which 1,694 are currently productive.

Climate

It is characterised by a temperate, continental climate. Its favourable slope angle and fragmented topography create extremely favourable microclimates and terroir.

Grape varieties and typical wine styles

The wine district is primarily a white wine area, although this has not always been the case. Nineteenth-century reports also note red wine production. Currently, besides Olaszrizling, planted on 616 hectares, there is a significant amount of Chardonnay, while the proportion of Müller-Thurgau (Rizlingszilváni in Hungarian) has also increased in the last decade and a half. It is a typical white wine growing region, with Olaszrizling as its flagship variety. Overall, the region is ideally suited for making the kind of wines with temperature-controlled fermentation that are currently in fashion; however, their peers, which have undergone longer ageing and have better preserved their individuality, always seem to boast greater merit. Olaszrizling can drop its acidity relatively quickly, so special attention needs to be paid to the timing of the harvest. The best wines are now marketed each year under the Csopak Codex trademark.

They boast wonderful texture, a salty-mineral character and restrained aromatics. They are elegant and nuanced wines, which clearly reflect their terroir, which is why some of the Csopak producers created the Csopak Codex trademark in 2012 to differentiate their best wines. These wines can only be made from grapes originating from the best vineyards, currently 40 in total. Much stricter than average regulations specify that these wines can only be produced from ripe, but not overripe or botrytised, grapes, with specific acidity and alcohol levels. There are also special rules for when they can be released.