Peter Wetzer

Peter Wetzer grew up in a winemaking family, and while he studied the world of wine he came to realize he vastly preferred the wines that were made more naturally. In 2007 he purchased five different vineyards around the town of Sopron, in the northwest part of Hungary. Sopron was formerly the capital of Burgenland, so it is not surprising that the Kékfrankos (Blaufränkisch) variety is so commonly found here. Peter works Kékfrankos on five different vineyard sites comprising 2.5 hectares and additionally has 1 hectare of furmint vines he planted himself near the Ság volcano, and another hectare of vines from a few different varieties like Pinot Noir. He works to have very healthy soil, with natural biodiversity, and minimum spraying with copper sulfate and a nettle tincture he makes. He believes in minimal intervention in the vines, never tilling the soil or trimming the leaves. All grapes are hand-harvested, and the vineyards are all fermented separately.

Enjoy a quick introduction story on Peter and his wines

 

Furmint Somló — Back to the top

Grape: 100% Furmint

Vineyard: Szt. Marton vineyard, on the East side of the Somló volcano. Planted in 1989, organically managed. Volcanic soil (basalt, tuff)

Making of: Grapes are hand-harvested and selected, then gently foot-stomped and basket-pressed into in 500-liter barrels (Hungarian and Austrian oak) where they slowly fermented with wild yeast until racking in February. The wine then ages in the same barrels until May when it’s bottled by gravity. No fining or filtration. 

 

 

 

Furmint Tokaj — Back to the top

 

Age of Vines: 30 years

Soil: Volcanic

Varieties: Furmint

Vinification Method: Grapes are harvested at the beginning of October, foot stomps and then the whole bunches are pressed in a basket press. The juice ferments in 500-liter stockinger barrels and rests in those barrels for a total of about 8 months. The wine is unfined and unfiltered and has a small addition of sulfur at bottling.

 

 

Peter Weiss (Gruner Veltliner) — Back to the top

Grape: 100% Gruner Veltliner (Zöldveltelini in Hungarian)

Vineyard: Rothe Peter vineyard in Kogl, Sopron region. 0.8ha planted in 1973 and managed organically. Rocky soil with mica schist and quartz

Making of: the grapes are hand-harvested and manually selected. Gently crushed and basket-pressed after 24 hours on skins, wild fermented partly in a 500-liter barrel and partly in stainless steel tank (50-50) till February. Aging in the same vessel, racked in May, bottled by gravity in July. No fining or filtration.

Ság (White Fieldblend) — Back to the top

Grape: fieldblend of mainly Olaszrizling (=local name for Welschriesling), Hárslevelü, Rizlingszilváni, Pölöskei Muskotály & others

Vineyard: a very old vineyard planted around 100 years ago on Ság, a small extinct volcano west of Somló. Gobelet-trained organic plot on red volcanic soil (basalt, tuff)

Making of: the grapes are hand-harvested and manually selected. Gently foot-stomped and basket-pressed, then wild fermented partly in 300-liter and 500-liter Hungarian barrels till December. Aging in the same vessel, bottled by gravity in May. No fining or filtration.

Personality: the most textured of Peter’s whites, with a distinct volcanic character.

Pinot Noir — Back to the top

Grapes: Pinot Noir (2 different clones)

Vineyard: blend of two different vineyard sites in Sopron: Kraftner has limestone soil, planted in 1973; Kogl is mica and schist, planted in 1982. Both organically managed.

Making of: the grapes are hand-harvested and manually selected, then fermented in open-topped vats, 1/3 as whole bunches, for about 3 weeks, with manual punchdowns geared toward a light extraction. After fermentation, the grapes are basket pressed and aged in 300-500 liter old barrels for about 12 months, on the lees. The barrels are then racked together and bottled by gravity in May. Unfined and unfiltered, with a small addition of sulfur.

 

Kékfrankos — Back to the top

Grape: Kékfrankos (Blaufränkisch)

Vineyard: blend of several vineyards in Sopron: Kanratz, Kogl and Harmler, with loam, limestone and mica-schist soil. Organically managed, planted between 1970-1979

Making of: the grapes are hand-harvested and manually selected, destemmed and fermented in open vats for 18-22 days on the skins, with some manual punching down aiming at light extraction. The wine is then basked-pressed and aged in used 500-liter oak barrels with the lees. Bottled by gravity in May, unfined and unfiltered with a small addition of sulfur.

Kékfrankos Blumenthal — Back to the top

Age of Vines: 40-60 years old

Soil: loam and limestone

Varieties: Kékfrankos (Blaufränkisch)

Vinification Method: Grapes are destemmed and fermented in open vats for 18-22 days on the skins, with some manual punching down. The wine is aged in 300-1000 liter used barrels with the lees. The wine is unfined and unfiltered, and has a small addition of sulfur at bottling.

 

Kékfrankos Spern Steiner — Back to the top

Spern Steiner is considered the “grand cru” vineyard of the Sopron region.

Age of Vines: 55 years 

Soil: mica, schist, and quartz

Varieties: Kékfrankos (Blaufränkisch)

Vinification Method: Grapes are destemmed and fermented in open vats for 18-22 days on the skins, with some manual punching down. The wine is aged in 300-1000 liter used barrels with the lees. The wine is unfined and unfiltered, and has a small addition of sulfur at bottling.

Kékfrankos PetiNat Rosé — Back to the top

Grape variety: Kékfrankos

Vineyard: Kogl plot with rocky soils and mica schist, planted in 1973

Winemaking: the grapes are hand-harvested and sorted, then crushed and left on skins for 5 hours. The free-run juice then ferments slowly without any additives, in the deep cellar of a former monastery, with a constant temperature of 13 degrees Celsius. The wine is bottled by gravity in January and rests in the same cellar till shipping. No disgorgement, no filtration, no fining, no additives.