Organic cultivation

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Organic cultivation at the Gróf Degenfeld Winery

In autumn of 2008 the owners of the Gróf Degenfeld Winery, Countess Marie Degenfeld and her husband, Dr. Thomas Lindner, started to realise a long-cherished plan.
Since the foundation of the Winery in 1996 the creation of high quality wines has been the main aim and guiding principle in the work carried out for over ten years.
During their world travels the owners are constantly looking how to improve grape and wine production in their own winery, thus bringing it to an even higher standard.
They are come to realise that the leading, world-famous wine estates are increasingly paying attention to ecological methods that are more than simply “bio” (organic) and which overcome any possibly negative associations with that term. They are dedicated to real content, encompassing environmental awareness and production that is in harmony with nature.
Since no such experience or practice was available at the time in the Tokaj wine region they enlisted the expert guidance of a German consultant in their change to organic methods.

The Terézia vineyard in Tarcal with its three hectares of newly planted Hárslevelű vines has received organic plant protection from the outset. In addition the 4 year-old Furmint (1 ha) and Muscat Lunel (3 ha) plantations also part of the Terézia vineyard have been included in the programme.
In spring 2009 the movement towards ecological land management was begun on seven hectares of land.
The plant protection plan provided at the start of the year using baking powder, sodium silicate and extract of fennel as “pest management” was, in all honesty, met with some scepticism by our vine growers who have several decades of professional experience behind them. We believed that this demands a fundamentally new approach which is possibly our greatest challenge.
We must learn how to treat the vines, their environment and the soil as one integral entity, informed by an intimate knowledge of the physiological processes of the grapes and of wine. Just as human medicine is unsuccessful if we treat only the symptoms, we must also be able to recognise the reasons for any problems that may arise in order to guide our grape growing.
Organic vine growing is not simply a question of plant protection. This is a complex technology both in grape growing and in the wine making as well.

Last autumn we sowed papilionaceae seed mixture between the rows, partly in order to repair the soil's biological activity aiming towards a more intensive soil life that will ensure the soil fertility, improve its structure, and increase the humus and nutrient content of the soil in the long term. The composition of this seed mixture with plants that flower over a long period will also continuously attract insects which are natural enemies of those pests that damage the grapes.
All these measures are supported by the preparation of compost composed of soil, alfalfa and manure, one third each. After six months maturing and treatment we spread the compost on the plantations developing both the soil structure and soil life which contribute to the improved condition of the vine stock and a balanced distribution of nutrients.
Pruning is the key in the treatment of the vines and the principle remained the same here too: low demand on vine stocks, supplemented by shoot and bunch selection aimed at both a balance of fruiting and the optimisation of the relationship between the plant and its environment.
At the start of the vegetation period the issues of plant protection posed the greatest challenge.
How would we be able to protect the vines from powdery mildew, peronospora and pests?
For this a well-established method was put in place; we protected them with organic treatments on 9 spraying-sessions during the vegetation period. We successfully used pheromone dispersion to prevent damage from moths.
Another critical area is weed prevention. Here the best way is the traditional mechanical solution, employing both mechanical and manual hoeing between the rows and the vine stocks.
The first vegetation period is now over and initial doubts have been dispelled. We are harvesting grapes from our first 4 organic hectares of vineyards and the results are perfect, healthy grapes.
Even though the work has only just started, with one year of experience behind us we can say that organic vine cultivation works. Obviously we are not going to stop here. The groundwork on a 2.5 hectares area above the winery is already underway for the spring planting of vines. The preparation of the soil, the addition of compost and the sowing of the seed mixture are all being carried out in the spirit of ecological agriculture.
The owners have undertaken a pioneering role in bringing to the Tokaj area this method of vine growing which is initially more expensive as it demands certain investments. However, we believe this is the way of the future – the only path leading to the highest quality.