Winery of the Year award winners:

Szőlőskert Rt.

Year: 2002 Region: Matraalja

Tokaj Oremus

Year: 2003 Region: Tokaj

Tokaj Oremus in Tolcsva, in the northeast of Hungary, is one of the best-known villages of the Tokaj-Hegyalja region.
Tokaj Oremus is proud of its 115 hectares of vineyards located in such beautiful places as the Mandulás and Kútpatka strips. These first class vineyards are part of the heritage of noble families, such as the Rákóczi, Szirmay and Dessewffly families. The vine, planted at the foot of the mountains, at an altitude below 200 meters above sea level, is safely protected from the northerly wind and, at the same time, is exposed to abundant sunshine. These factors, combined with the work of the winegrower and the winemaker – holders of family secrets passed on from father to son – bound to produce top quality wines. (http://www.tokajoremus.com)

Hilltop Neszmely Rt.

Year: 2004 Region: Neszmely

The company was founded in 1991 by Éva Keresztury, Imre Török, Judit Storcz and Akos Kamocsay, who are still at the helm of Hilltop Neszmely today, working together with a staff which has grown to 100 people. It all began with the purchase of the cellars in Neszmely. This team turned it, together with the red wine production site in Császár,
into a winery operating with 21st-century technology. These brilliant, fruit-driven wines were received highly favorably in the steadily expanding British market. Hilltop became the most successful Hungarian supplier to the British market long ago. The sales of wines
bearing the Hilltop Neszmély brand move between 5 and 8 million bottles annually.
Besides exports, the Hungarian market has also been growing dynamically. Today we
sell one million bottles of wine in the domestic market. Hilltop wines can be found on the
shelves of all major food stores and wine merchants, and are served in many hotels and
elegant restaurants.” (http://www.hilltop.hu)

Disznoko Vineyard Estate

Year: 2005 Region: Tokaj

The Disznoko (Boar stone) estate was named after the rock hiding beside the belvedere that reminded of the shape of a wild boar in the past, at least according to local people. The estate, which was calssified first class vineyard in the 1772 classification, lies on
150 hectares in the southern part of the Tokaj wine region. At the beginning of the 19th century Menyhért Lónyai built the Yellow Wine House here as the wine-press house of the estate. Since 1992 the former splendid past of the Tokaj wines has revived on the Disznókő estate. The new, state-of-the-art winery was built according to the plans of Ybl-prize winning architect Dezső Ekler, and in the course of a few-year long programme we replanted most of the vineyard and established an aging cellar carved into the solid rock under the estate and equipped it with oak barrels.(http://www.disznoko.hu)

Garamvari Vineyard Estate

Year: 2006 Region: Etyek-Buda, Balatonboglar

The Garamvari Vineyard Estate is a family enterprise based on the viticulturist learnedness and viticulture experience of several decades of the head of the family, Vencel Garamvari. The firm was established in 1990 under the name of Vinárium.
Having taken the tasks of marketing and developing markets at home and abroad, then firm has become famous as a supplier of quality wines. In 1993 this activity was widened by grape cultivation and viticulture in Balatonlelle. The enterprise became complete in 1996 when we bought the former Palugya-cellar in Budafok and started to deal with traditional sparkling wine-making. Recently, the activity of the firm is based on two pillars: the vineyard and viticulture plant in Balatonlelle, the Chateau Vincent sparkling wine cellars and the wholesale warehouse Vinárium in Budafok, engaged in marketing quality wine.  (http://www.garamvariszolobirtok.hu)

Bock Cellar

Year: 2007 Region: Villany

Following the death of his father, Jozsef Bock has begun making wine on his own in 1981. For a decade he was doing this only as a part-time job; after, as a result of increased land size and commercial success, he decided to commit himself to growing grapes and making wine on a full-time basis. At that time he was cultivating two and a half hectares, which has grown to a plantation of 75 hectares by today. Jozsef Bock has become the Wine Maker of the Year in 1997. This award was preceded and followed by several national and international recognitions. The Jammerthal Cellar is owned by the Bock family since 1850. It was nationalized in 1946, and then purchased back by Antal Bock in 1958. They began extending the cellar in the 1970s. Processing took place here until 1994, then, as the enterprise became larger, a new processor was built. At present the cellar is capable of holding 400 hl wine, but nowadays only special wines are kept here. (http://www.bock.hu)

Vylyan Cellar

Year: 2008 Region: Villany

“Our plantations are located on the spectacular slopes of the Villany Hills, including the winery on Black Hill (Fekete-hegy) in Kisharsany, lying in the heart of Dobogo vineyard. The founder, Pál Debreczeni, aimed to set up a trendsetting winery that would stand its own in international winemaking circles. Right from the beginning the main
consideration, subordinating all other aspects, was that of quality, – from choosing the slopes for the vines to marketing the wines. We planted our first grapes in 1992 and our first wines were introduced to the market in 1997. Beside the special qualities of the soil, the hard, enthusiastic work of an open-minded professional team bore its fruits and today Vylyan is one of the most prominent vineyards of the Villany region.” (http://www.vylyan.hu)

Szollosi Mihaly Cellar

Year: 2009 Region: Neszmely

The cellar with historical atmosphere had been ordered to be built by Count Miklos Zichy in 1830. After renovation one of the most beautiful underground wine storage facilities was created, where old tradition meets the most modern technology. Bricks with the blazoned with the noble stamp of that age were incorporated in the walls. The domed cellar is 65meters long. A wine museum had been created in the dome. This is the museum of the flagship wines of the “King Zsigmond Wine Knight Order” and the “Hungarian Wine Order”. The ‘tasting sanctuary’ created of old barrels makes the atmosphere even more medieval. The cellar was renovated in 1999. The processing building was built in front of the old cellar, in which one of the world’s most advanced French grape-processing machinery – called PERA – has been installed. The climate of the cellar is excellent, 160 hectoliters fine wines are aging in oak barrels (barrique) and in a 3500 hectoliter refrigerated stainless steel tank. (http://www.szollosipinceszet.hu)

Pannonhalmi Apatsagi Cellar

Year: 2010 Region: Pannonhalma-Sokoroalja

““The grapes from the vineyards of the Abbey Winery Pannonhalma are processed in the new cellar and wine house of almost 2000 square meter floor-space, located at the south-eastern foot of Saint Martin’s Hill, adjacent to the monastery. The building complex, which is in harmony with the environment and utilizes the pattern of the terrain, enables Guests to have full insight into the technical process of wine making and its results. The cellar technology, fit for the composition of the grape varieties, is suitable for producing more than 300 000 bottles of quality wine a year. We introduced a special wine producing process that perfectly preserves the high quality potential of our grape varieties.” (http://www.apatsagipinceszet.hu)

Thummerer Cellar

Year: 2011 Region: Eger

The Thummerer Cellar is a family business engaged to grape and wine growing since 1984. It makes its wines from the harvest of their own, nearly 80 hectares of estate, located in the Eger Region. 80% of the grape plantations are blue grapes, and 20% are white grapes. They harvest Áfrika, Vidra, Mészhegy hills of Eger, Tekenőhát, Kőkötő, Csókás hills of Noszvaj and the Juszalagos hills of Novaj. The estate is continuously growing and expanding by planting new vineyards. Technology is complemented with state of the art and top of the class equipment and machinery. The exclusive aim is to achieve top quality and to create one additional wine specialty eachyear to expand the range of products. (http://www.thummerer.hu)

Meszaros Pal Wine House and Cellar

Year: 2012 Region: Szekszard

Pal Meszaros has been engaged in grape growing and wine making over many decades.
Since 1989, the time of the change of the political system, his property has grown from 10 ha to almost one hundred hectares. Wine is produced in traditional wood barrels, in steel tanks – reductive method – and in automatic red-wine fermenting tanks under continuous laboratory control. Before bottling, wines are aged in barrique (newly manufactured) and in traditional barrels, kept on optimum temperature and in perfect conditions in cellars carved out from sand. His more than 250 years old cellar, which is worthy of presenting the region and its wines and suitable for holding major events, is located in the inner city of Szekszard. (http://www.meszarosborhaz.hu/)