Tradition
…from the next generations perspective
Anton and Theresia Moder
"I would like to start my story with my great-grandfather, Anton Moder. He had a small agricultural farm and a few vineyards in Haugsdorf, together with his wife.
Everything was done by hand in these days, his two horses were the only support available. Plant protection, soil management, harvest, … that all meant lots of physical work. Therefore, the cultivated area was rather small.
The grapes were processed in pressing houses and stored in underground cellars, a huge contrast to the high-tech wine-cellars nowadays. We, as the "young generation” can hardly imagine, how the job of a winemaker was like in former times.
My great-grandfather paid lots of attention on the well-being of his vines. He created a small vineyard-paradise where different fruit trees and shrubs grew next to the vines. This was not only the workplace, but also living space for my great-grandparents.
In the early 1970s, when quantity was the main goal in viticulture, my great-grandfather walked through the vineyards to cut down some grapes - a form of yield reduction, so to say.
Anton and Theresia Schöfmann
In 1962, the winery was taken over by my grandmother, together with her husband Anton Schöfmann, a graduate from the viticulture school in Retz.
The working conditions and processes in viticulture changed steadily, which required learning and open-mindedness.
The "wine dialogues”, which traditionally take place between Christmas and New Year's Day to taste the new vintage, were the perfect occasions for exchange of knowledge and experience.
July 1985 - the Austrian wine scandal was a shock for the winemakers, as they had to face difficult economic times. But in the long run the wine scandal brought mainly positive consequences. From this moment on, we sold our wine directly from the cellar, the consumers were interested in the origin of the wine and the relationship to the winemaker was important to them. In addition, Austria created the strictest wine law in the world, which lead to high quality-awareness.
Toni Schöfmann
Since 1990, my uncle Anton Schöfmann junior has led the winery. At the federal high school of oenology in Klosterneuburg he gained knowledge about new developments in viticulture and oenology. After graduation, he had been working at a winery in the German Pfalz region to get hands-on experience. When coming back home, he implemented changes in the wine production as well as in wine distribution. Together with three other young winemakers he found a distribution-cooperation, which presented their wines at several fairs and events.
The harvest of 2007 was the last one processed in the cellar-lane, a narrow street lined with wine cellars on each side. In April of the following year, we invited friends and partners to the opening event of our new cellar building and tasting room.
Toni's passion belongs to red wine, so he emphasized his focus on it more and more. In the 1990s he planted Cabernet Franc and Pinot Noir on our best red wine location "Hutberg”. The first red Cuvée named "Hutberg” was made in 1990.
And nowadays?
Three generations contribute their parts to our family business. Over the last decades, open-mindedness played a big role in our winery. It is built on the red wine tradition of Haugsdorf, which has been established by former generations."