Edge Media Network: An Austrian Adventure

7/31/2019 Edge Media Network: An Austrian Adventure

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NATURAL WONDERBurgenland is Austrias easternmost state, bordering Hungary, Slovakia and Slovenia.Its 280,000 inhabitants enjoy 300 days of sunshine a year, which makes for greatagriculture, including a wine industry that is thriving partly because of early supportfrom the European Union, which matched funds for viticulture development. (Rememberwhen the E.U. had enough money to fund projects like these?) Dotted along the flatcountryside youll find accommodations ranging from cottages to vineyard estates.Austria also has a rich cultural tradition in music and crafts, all of which can be exploredin the small towns and villages that dot the countryside.

My first stop was St. Martins Spa & Lodge at Lake Neusiedl. Opened in 2009, theproperty respectfully showcases the area, which comprises a protected wildlife regionthat is home to 320 species, including birds, water buffalo and wild horses. St. Martinsrises seamlessly out of the horizon.

The combination of a spa, a lodge and this very specific kind of nature cannot beimitated, CEO Klaus M. Hofmann says. The foundations for such a refuge are unique.Nature plays the leading role in the area and in the St. Martins Spa & Lodge itself.

St. Martins centerpiece is its thermal baths, which for centuries have offered healingand relaxation. The 109-degree mineral water is pumped from 2,800 feet below thesurface, while the outdoor pool uses natural lake water. Signature spa treatmentsdraw from their surroundings, including salt, grapes, sparkling wine and pomace. Aftersoaking and swimming in the various pools, I felt invigorated and ready to explore thenearby national park.

The Neusiedler See National Park is a collaborative conservation project more than 80years in the making. The first wetlands were put under protection in 1926, and furtherlaws and agreements have been implemented. The park now belongs to nearly 1,200

property owners, primarily local part-time farmers who have agreed to discontinueworking a portion of their land in exchange for an annual indemnity.

ST. MARTINS SPA & LODGE AT LAKE NEUSIEDL

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Educational and recreational opportunities abound, from walking and bikingpaths to observation points and stables. I ventured out with a small group,accompanied by a park ranger and plenty of high-powered telescopes andbinoculars. We planted ourselves in a gazebo overlooking one of the reedpatches and waited. For what, I wasnt sure. There were plenty of ducks,and I may have seen a purple heron or was that a spoonbill?

I looked back and saw not one of the famous white donkeys or Hungariangray cattle that I had read about in the brochure, but one of our own propped up against a bale of hay for an afternoon nap. She had wanderedoff after receiving what she perceived to be an inadequate answer toWhat are we doinghere? The answer was nothing. And everything. It wasa picture-perfect afternoon for a city dweller like myself, more accustomedto crowded sidewalks than wispy footpaths.

BURGENLANDSVITICULTURE

MERGES CENTURIES-OLD WINEMAKING

TECHNIQUESWITH MODERN

ARCHITECTURE ANDAGRITOURISM.

UNEXPECTED WINE COUNTRYBurgenlands viticulture merges centuries-oldwinemaking techniques with modern architectureand agritourism. While Austria is primarily known inthe States for its crisp Grner Veltliner and Riesling,Burgenland produces lean reds worth seeking out fromyour favorite local wine shop or online. Blaufrnkischor Zweigelt appeared regularly throughout my wineryvisits, each one offering a unique expression of thevintners vision. Golden dessert wines (Prdikat) are

also produced throughout the region.

Wiengut Triebaumer, outside the charming village ofRust, is a family-run business that has been producingsince 1691, when the first Triebaumer married thedaughter of a local winemaker. The current generation,Gerhard Triebaumer and his wife Claudia, now overseethe operation. The young couple took me to the familys1,000-acre vineyard, a patchwork of plots growing anarray of varieties. Chardonnay and Blaufrnkisch are

the most abundant, and when conditions are right,Ruster Ausbruch is produced (usually from Chardonnay,Welschriesling and Sauvignon Blanc). This region-specific dessert wine relies on botrytis (or noble rot),a naturally occurring fungus that concentrates thegrapes residual sugar.

After a delightful garden lunch at Wirthaus Im Hoffgassl inRust, I ventured on to a different kind of winery. WeingutHans Igler is an agricultural estate dating to 1700. It was

purchased by the Reisner-Igler family in 2004 and hasbeen revitalized and renovated as a dramatic special

(BOTH PHOTOS) WIENGUT TRIEBAUMER

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event space that showcases the stunninglandscape as well as the wines. I tasted aflight of red wines, ranging from the 2009Volcano, a blend of Blaufrnkisch, CabernetSauvignon Merlot, and Zweigelt, to the2006 Blaufrnkisch Reserve, elegant withsoft tannins and saturated fruit.

To complete my trifecta of Burgenland wine

country, I visited Weninger Winery, a family-run operation since 1828. Franz Weninger,33, has taken the reins and is makinguncompromising organic and biodynamicwines. Not short on opinions, Weningeris quick to say that Austrias 1985 winescandal (in which brokers added diethyleneglycol, found as a small percentage inantifreeze, to add sweetness and bodyto industrialized product) was positive,

because it returned the industry to smaller,independent operations.

Weninger is also not particularly interestedin winning awards at international blindtastings. Theres a difference between acompetition wine and a solid drinking wine,he says. It is much more fun to taste whenyou know the person and the place.

In his case, I couldnt agree more. Donning apair of trendy glasses and a slightly renegadeattitude, he walked me through the facility,which avoids cutting-edge technologiesand instead relies on a carefully calculatedvinification process using spontaneousfermentation, yeasts from his own vineyardand natural maturation. With a focus onBlaufrnkisch, the regions signature redgrape, Weninger hits it out of the park with

the 2008 vintage. Find it if you can, butkeep it a secret.

CULINARY TRADITIONSOn the food front, Austria draws influence fromthroughout Europe: pastries from the Czech Republic,spices like paprika from Hungary, meats from Germanyand pasta from Italy. The cuisine has become lighter

and more refined in the past 20 years, yet you can stillfind traditional preparations throughout Burgenland.

For an authentic experience, I sought out one of themany buschenschanksthat pepper the region. Thesetaverns, run by local growers, are lively gatheringplaces and follow a specific set of traditions. Onlywine from the owners own vineyards can be served.

And the menu? Leave your vegan pals at home, as this

rustic feast usually consists of local meats, cheesesand bread accompanied by various spreads andpickled vegetables. Pandora wont be piping throughthe sound system either. A traditional buschenschankfeatures live music, with the proprietor or other familymembers at a piano or strolling among the tableswith a guitar or accordion.

While local taverns and cafs are a delicious wayto explore Burgenlands countryside, fine dining is

available in the most unlikely places. I stumbled onthe tiny village of Purbach and the magic of chef

GUT PURBACH TAVERN

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I toured the facility (housed in two small buildings behind the familyshouse) and witnessed the delicate artistry involved in creating the

deep blue bolts of fabric. The indigo paste is a highly guarded familyrecipe passed down through the generations.

The Kos specialty is double-sided printing, which showcasesa different pattern on both sides of the fabric through the use ofan old rotary printing machine. Few places or people in the worldtake such pride in their work. I bought a traditional apron and amconvinced that my cooking tastes much better when Im wearing it,as if Joseph Ko, the patriarch, imparted some of his work ethosinto the fabric.

Burgenland, with 1,500 miles of bike paths, countless vistas, andmultitude of cultural and gastronomic offerings, is a hidden gem. Iwas delighted by each twist and turn of my adventure. People livesimply, and the region feels untarnished by industrialization. Theybreathe fresh air and work with the earth to produce an array offresh produce, quality wines, and free-range sheep and cattle. Music,art and craftsmanship express the surrounding beauty.

Best of all, time seems to move a bit slower in Burgenland, and at

the end of another sunny day, thats a good thing.

CONTINUE FOR EDGE MAGAZINESBURGENLAND TRAVEL GUIDE

THE HAYDNSAAL FRESCOES

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Edge Media Network: An Austrian Adventure