Haraszthy Vineyards was one of the pioneers of Etyek wine region. When Carlos Coelho from Argentina first visited the village, there was not a single cellar open, it was impossible to taste wine. Now, 24 years later the estate is the largest in Etyek–Buda wine region, it has a functioning steak restaurant and the estate with a lovely swimming pool is a dream venue for events (just watch this latest soft drink commercial shot at Haraszthy Vineyards). But of course the main focus is winemaking with award winning Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir wines, méthode traditionnelle sparkling wine and juicy aromatic wines. Below is the chief winemaker of Haraszthy Vineyards, Dániel Pázmányi’s report on the experiences of this year’s harvest so far and the vintage of 2020 (date of report: 4th October).

A vintage for lovers of acidity

′′2020 spring was quite dry with little precipitation. In June, when flowering occurs, the weather was more damp, with frequent showers. August was the hottest month, right when the Irsai Olivér was ripening. This year we didn’t have long, warm growing periods, but we had less rain, so grapes are having higher acidity, and they could grow slower than usual, véraison came suddenly. Overall, we harvested beautiful, healthy grapes, with some signs of the overripening because of the immediate heat.

The biggest challenge was to predict the start of our harvest. 14th August was the first ’test’ day of the harvest in Vál, then we continued on the 17th August; first we harvested Irsai Olivér, then Zenit – for the first time. The first week of September was about our base wine of the Öreghegy Brut (Chardonnay and Pinot Noir). Pinot Grigio ripened relatively quickly – compared to previous years, so we started harvesting PG on the 10th September. Right after we continued with the Pinot Noir rosé base wine, the Sauvignon Blanc, the Királyleányka, then we finished with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir after the 20th September.

Rush to avoid overripening

“These weeks have been extremely hot, so we had to pick the grapes right after each other, to avoid overripening (and higher alcohol content). I think the most unique thing this year is that we didn’t have weeks for the Sauvignon Blanc harvest, but only days. Sauvignon Blanc and the rosé is at the end of their fermentation process, while Királyleányka is just at the middle of it. Now we are focusing on the Öreghegy Cuvée base wine and the late harvest Zenit, but I can tell; the vintage of 2020 is going to be very bright and promising. We are looking forward drinking the first glasses!”

Did you know?

The name of the winery commemorates one of the most important Hungarian personalities of the wine world, Ágoston Haraszthy, who is said to be “the father of Californian viticulture”. This year a wine family has been dedicated to him with labels depicting his adventurous life.

Read about Haraszthy’s story on wine labels

More about Haraszthy Vineyards