Pressing The Grapes: Part 2 Of The Journey To Make Wine In Burgenland.

Could this have been the way wine was made centuries ago?

Even though it is hard physical work to press the grapes, it is a very grounding affair. Apart from the Rebler, the first stage of wine making could have been done this way centuries ago.

First of all, in Part 1, I did promise to reveal the " powerful & handsome " presser. Okay, when I took this picture, he did try and look as if he could do it with his little finger...at times he couldn't move the lever even with two powerful arms!! We had to get as much out as possible...down to the last drops of grape juice.

You can see the white grapes rendering their bounty.

Just to show you how the press works. We had to refill it and to do this, you need to undo all the wooden pieces. Those pieces help to press down on the grape mass. All natural wood.

Bob takes one side panel off, so that we could empty the press.

Don't you just want to eat a piece of this?. As most of the juices have been squeezed out, the grapes have formed into this disc like mass. Believe me I ate lots as we took it out. These left over grapes get used to make Schnapps / Grappa. Nothing gets wasted...

Here I am surrounded by grapes in all shapes and forms. The press re-filling station.

We took a bit of a break and basked in the scenery.

Isn't this just the best view? Vines as far as you can see. Even on cloudy days it is nice to sit on this veranda and overlook the vineyards.
It is available for holiday letting. Have a look and maybe you could spend a day/ few days/ week or more in and among the vineyards tasting the local wines and customs.

Maybe even taste the wine we made!

Biggi