The winery is located in the municipality of Seefeld-Kadolz in the Pulka Valley on the border with the
Czech Republic in the wine-growing region of
Weinviertel in Lower Austria. Vineyards were already cultivated on the sites in the 16th century, and the farm cellar still in use today dates back to 1640. The name Hardegg probably goes back to the Bavarian nobleman Luitold II, who had Hardegg Castle built on the so-called "hard corner" of the river Thaya in the early 12th century. Afterwards, the county changed hands several times and passed to the Habsburgs. According to a document dated 28 March 1495, Emperor Maximilian I (1459-1519) sold it to Heinrich Prueschenk, a direct ancestor of today's Hardegg family. Today the winery is owned by Dipl. Ing. Maximilian Hardegg, who continues the almost 400-year-old family tradition of winemaking and
sustainable management. Andreas Gruber is responsible as the farm manager.
The vineyards cover 41 hectares of vineyards on sandy raw rock soils of marine origin with a high lime content. They are planted with the white wine varieties Grüner Veltliner (45%), Riesling, Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay and, unique in Austria,
Viognier, as well as with the red wine varieties Pinot Noir, Merlot, Zweigelt, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah.
Biodynamic viticulture has been practised since 2006. The musts are fermented spontaneously with the vineyard's own yeasts.
Enzymes,
fining and technical enrichment methods are not used. The wine is traditionally matured in 1,200 to 4,000 litre wooden barrels. The basic wine lines are Veltlinsky,
Weinviertel DAC (Grüner Veltliner, "Weine vom Schloss" and the terroir-emphasised site reserves from the 14-hectare Ried Steinbügel. Specialities are the white wine "V" made from Viognier, as well as the "Forticus" made from Merlot in the style of a vintage port. A bottle-fermented sparkling wine is also produced. Around 250,000 bottles of wine are produced annually. The winery is a member of the
Premium Wine Estates Weinviertel
