![]() With 300 days of sunshine, and the fast moving Adige River nearby, the resources are there. But as we turn to the right, we travel forward in time a couple of centuries to the very modern production facilities used today – topped with solar panels as the winery intends to become self-sufficient with its energy needs in the near future. It is flanked by a couple of old presses and other original artifacts. Under the loft is the entrance to the original wine cellar of Ansitz Löwengang. Walking through the archway you are momentarily transported back in time by the sight of corn stalks drying on an open air loft, just as they would have dried them hundreds of years ago to obtain corn meal for the favorite local dish, polenta. ![]() A wine cellar since 1666, as the oldest date on the arch indicates, the property was purchased in 1855 by the Lageder family, who had been producing wines in Bolzano. We arrive under the arched entrance to Ansitz Löwengang. To quote from their web site: “The 21st century´s modern man often no longer sees nature’s interrelationships and has lost the working knowledge that our forebears acquired through observation over the millennia.” They promote biodiversity by sowing ground cover plants and planting shrubs, introducing animals into the vineyards and fertilizing the soil with compost. no herbicides, insecticides, fungicides and mineral fertilizers, and instead turning to biodynamic preparations and homeopathic infusions. Their objective as wine growers is not to simply grow grapes, but to maintain and develop this complex ecosystem which will naturally result in grapes of the highest quality, and at the same time ensure the sustainability of their land.Īt the practical level this means working without chemicals and synthetic products for plant protection, i.e. Biodynamics views a farm as an enclosed microcosm containing a variety of plants and animals, soil and nature. Biodynamics (from the Greek bios meaning life and dinamikòs meaning movement) is a method of agriculture based on the principles developed by the Austrian philosopher Rudolf Steiner at the beginning of the 20th century. As we walk, Christian and I chat about the passion and commitment Lageder has for biodynamic methods. We walk across the small central square of Margreid, and down a narrow alley to the production facility. The palazzo and grounds have been left in the original condition, and combined with the restored facilities in the Vineria make an ideal setting for special events. As with many estates owned by the church, they produced wine to generate income. Eventually their fortunes waned and the property was sold to the church. Portions of this palazzo date back to the 13th century, it was eventually completed in the 16th century by the Hirschprunn family, a local family with enough wealth to buy their way into the nobility. We walk through the lovely courtyard with a large fountain, and through a gate into the yard of Casòn Hirschprunn. Christian informs me that the restaurant features organic, seasonal, local products with the goal to become totally biodynamic as soon as there are sufficient local vendors to supply them, probably still a few years off. On a sunny May day, it is the perfect setting to sample a few wines and enjoy a light meal. ![]() I met my guide Christian at Vineria Paradeis, an enoteca and restaurant on the estate. Knowing when to empower nature to take its course and when to introduce technology to the mix, Lageder is pursuing an admirable vision centered around ensuring his estate, his terroir, and therefore his wine have a bright and long future in spite of the environmental challenges that we face today. But behind the ancient facades lies a winery leading the way to bring wine production into the future.Īlois Lageder is on the forefront of developing biodynamic and sustainable practices in all areas of process, from the vineyard to the bottle. The wine business has a long history in this village, where supposedly the oldest vine in Europe, dating from the 17th century, still bears fruit. Stately homes of the local nobility as well as quaint old farmhouses line the narrow streets, where today the locals still gather on the few benches in the center as school lets out for the day. Nestled against the steep rock face of Fennberg mountain lies the small wine village of Margreid.
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