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AUSTRIA
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Szigeti
WINERY OVERVIEW
Modern day Szigeti (pronounced ZIG-it-ee) was born in 1990, when brothers Norbert and
Peter Szigeti returned to their hometown of Gols, Austria to take over the family business.
Past generations had produced small quantities of wine in their village in a traditional mixed
agriculture system.
Norbert trained in enology and worked in a large sparkling wine firm in Vienna, while Peter
completed hotel management school and worked both in Austria and abroad. The brothers
combined their skills and increased knowledge of the market beyond their village to open
the Sektkellerei (“sparkling cellar.”) Through traditional bottle fermentation, Szigeti seeks to
produce “unmistakable fizz” with unique character.
LOCATION OF VINEYARD
Szigeti produces wine from a number of small farms on both sides of Lake Neusiedl in
Burgenland. They work closely with the growers to ensure reliable and quality grapes that
have been grown without chemical interventions.
WINEMAKING PHILOSOPHY
Szigeti’s approach to the production of high-quality, affordable sparkling wine is simple.
First, they insist on using only the finest grapes from carefully tended vineyards. Next, they
generate a firm bubble using the méthode traditionnelle. The wines acquire a distinctive
mousseux due to the use of yeasts indigenous to the classical Champagne region in France.
The dosages are typically prepared with local sweet wines.
For Szigeti, the bottle fermentation process must not hide the integrity of the fruit: the
dominant perfumes and flavors of the wines should be of the variety and should not be
masked at all by the yeasty notes of secondary fermentation in bottle. To showcase this
philosophy, Szigeti crafts sparkling wines from a dozen different varietals, and the hallmark of
each is varietal expression. There is no better example of the strength of this philosophy than
the Grüner Veltliner Brut.
Owned by
:
Peter and Norbert Szigeti
Winemaker
:
Norbert Szigeti
Founded in
:
1990
Region
:
Burgenland
Country
:
Austria
Wines
:
Szigeti, Cuvée Prestige Brut
Szigeti, Grüner Veltliner Brut
Szigeti, Grüner Veltliner Brut 2011 Special Release
Szigeti, Gustav Klimt Blanc de Blancs Brut
Szigeti, Pinot Noir Rośe Brut
Szigeti, Riesling Brut Spitzer Graben