Kolfok - 'All Universe Together' - Field Blend - Burgenland, AT - 2022

Notes from the Winery/Importer

A fun and unique new wine from Kolfok. A blend of up to 20 different old vine varieties, harvested and fermented together. A true representation of a historic way of thinking about wine and grapes. In many cultures a variety of grape types were often planted together near people's homes and used to make fresh young wines for personal consumption. These 60-80 year old vines, a mix of Hungarian, Austrian reds, several Traminer and Burgundian varieties, Muskat and Furmint were blended to make a fresh and evocative wine somewhere between a rose and a red that is a joy to drink. Best served chilled.

Notes on the Producer

The word Kolfok has its origins in a regional dialect and describes a person, critical to common thoughts — an unconventional thinker. Winemaker and Kolfok in chief Stefan Wellanschitz was born into winemaking at the family's estate in Neckenmarkt, a winery that dates back to the early 19th century, to a time when this part of Burgenland was still Hungarian and not Austrian. While still also working at the family's estate, Stefan decided to launch his own wines back in 2013, wines that are a clear deviation from the family's more traditional style, towards natural winemaking and a purist low-tech approach that would highlight soils and micro-climate, aka terroir. Some parts of the vineyards are directly at the border of Hungary, especially the town Neckenmarkt shows a unique combination of alpine soils and Pannonian climate. In the middle of the Oedenburger Valley, Neckenmarkt is located at a relatively high altitude, the vineyards are up to 500 meters above sea level with a smorgasbord of soils coming into play. In the higher parts soils range from schist, gneiss to limestone, and in the lower vineyards from ferrous loam to volcanic clay. Says Stefan: "I want to show those exceptional conditions in my wines. That's why I work naturally both in the vineyards and in the cellar. To prevent monoculture the vines are growing organically together with other herbs and plants. In the cellar it's very easy - the wine leaves the press without the use of pumps into local oak barrels which can be from 600 liters (Halbstueck) to 1200 liters (Stueck), this is where the stays without fining, moving or even sulfuring. At the optimum time, they are bottled unfiltered with minimal addition of sulfur."