"Brettljause" and Wine at Buschenschank Trummer, Weingut Trummer, with Jürgen Trummer - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours took place from Sunday, May 28 - Thursday, June 08, 2023. We toured Austria for 12 days, starting and ending in Vienna: Wien, Wagram, Carnuntum, Burgenland, Steiermark, Wachau, Kamptal, Kremstal, Traisental, Wien.

In the Steiermark, the focus was on the hilly Südsteiermark region which is famous for its crisp white wines. There is brilliantly fresh Sauvignon Blanc, delicious Welschriesling, crisp Schilcher and fruity Muskateller or Traminer. But also Burgundy varieties, above all Chardonnay - called Morillon here - thrive splendidly in Austria's southernmost wine-growing region. Nevertheless Sauvignon Blanc is king here.

We visited the following wineries in the Südsteiermark:

Weingut Sattlerhof, Sernau, Südsteiermark. See: Tour and Tasting at Weingut Sattlerhof, Steiermark, with Justė Sattler - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Weingut Wohlmuth, Kitzek, Südsteiermark. See: Tour and Tasting at Weingut Wohlmuth, Steiermark, with Maria Wohlmuth - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Weingut Trummer, Spielfeld, Südsteiermark

Weingut Polz, Strass, Südsteiermark

Weingut Tement, Ehrenhausen, Südsteiermark

The visit of Weingut Trummer was not a typical winery visit with tasting, but a "Brettljause with Trummer wines at Buschenschank Trummer". 

An Austrian Buschenschank is a small inn or wine tavern run by a local wine grower. In addition to being a tavern, some buschenschanks are also small inns which offer comfy rooms for guests along with good food and wine. Others are simply part of a Weingut where you can enjoy their own wines along with homemade foods and breads. Brettljause is a tasty tray of cold Austrian specialty foods with arrangements of salads, meats, and cheeses.

Jürgen Trummer was our host. 

Actually, the Brettljause and Wine at Buschenschank Trummer, Weingut Trummer, with Jürgen Trummer was included into the tour schedule only at the very end, after we had met by accident Jürgen Trummer in a Graz wine bar during our February 2023 pre-tour visit of Austria. See: Checking, Fine-tuning, Researching, Pre-gaming in Austria in February 2023 - Wine & Culture Tour to Austria by ombiasy WineTours: May 28 - June 08, 2023

Weingut Trummer, Spielfeld, Südsteiermark

The Trummer winery is a relatively young winery compared to the standard in Austria.

Jürgen Trummer is the third generation. At the age of 21 he took over the responsibility for the vines, the harvest, the grapes and the development of wine estate. The winery and wine tavern are idyllically nestled on the unique Obegg vineyard, which sits directly at the border with Slovenia. The vines grow on a 15 million-year-old limestone reef of dead coral banks, so the soil is pure shell limestone, rarely found anywhere else in the world. The climate is also very unique. Here the alpine marginal climate meets the heat of Pannonia, the warm, flat eastern part of Hungary. This does not always make the
work easy, but it rewards with wines expressing a strong character and great potential for aging. 

Styria is a region of precipitation, more rain falls here than in any other Austrian wine-growing region. Hail and heavy rains make viticulture in this beautiful region challenging, to say the least. 

In the past, chemical pesticides were used to combat pests and fungal infestation. When Jürgen Trummer took over he immediately converted to organic viticultural practices. He says: “In the course of our conversion to organic viticulture, I have learned to appreciate and love the little things. For example our compost, which is really good for our soil and the vines, and the many plants in the rows
of vines, which do not take away any nutrition from the vines, as has always been wrongly claimed, but rather enrich the biotope and attract important insects. The vineyards (called Rieden in Austria) are also more important to me than ever, because the vineyards and their different terroirs give the wines their character.”

Brettljause & Buschenschank: Gamlitz, Austria’s Amazing Wine Taverns to Visit and Stay

If you’re planning a trip to the wine region of southern Austria (and you should be), you’re likely to come across a unique word to describe one of the country’s most popular cultural traditions — the buschenschank.

And when it comes to food and wine in Austria, buschenschank is as much fun to experience as it is to say!

The term buschenschank literally means ‘bush tavern’ or ‘bough tavern’, referring to the boughs which are tied and hung over a door to show guests there is indeed wine in the house, and welcome them in for a taste of the season’s first pressings.

Buschenschanks are a delightful tradition that continues today throughout Austria, and one that’s highly anticipated by visitors and locals alike. They’re also a great way to explore and slow travel the quaint small towns and villages in Austria for a truly authentic experience.

One more unique delicious tradition to add to your Europe bucket list!

What is a Buschenschank?

An Austrian buschenschank (boo-shen-shank) is a small inn or wine tavern run by a local wine grower. In addition to being a tavern, some buschenschanks are also small inns which offer comfy rooms for guests along with good food and wine. Others are simply part of a weingut (winery) where you can enjoy their own wines along with homemade foods and breads.

To experience the cultural tradition of a buschenschank, Gamlitz in South Styria is the perfect place to start. This small town at the beginning of the South Styrian wine road (Südsteirische Weinstraße) is full of charm.

We were introduced to this Austrian cultural tradition on our first visit to Südsteiermark (South Styria) several years ago and have been enjoying it ever since. South Styria is one of the best day trips from Graz though allow yourself at least 4 or 5 days to slowly travel the wine road. 

By law, a buschenschank can only serve cold food usually in the form of local cold-cuts of meat, cheeses, and breads. The buschenschanks are also required to serve only wine, and it must be their own.

Don’t ask for a beer, soft drink, or coffee — they’re not allowed to serve them. But no worries — none of these hard and fast rules detracts from what is a truly fun slow travel cultural experience. 

What is Brettljause?

We’re not sure if Brettljause is more fun to say or to eat, but this tasty tray of Austrian specialty foods are common throughout the country. Pronounced brett-el-YOW-za, this local delicacy is called Brettljause and is akin to a charcuterie platter, only taken up a thousand notches.

Brettljause is an elevated presentation, with beautiful arrangements of salads, meats, and cheeses. And you’ll often see fresh flowers adorning the top, like the cherry on top. Yowza!! 

And lest you think your meal is going to be a few unsubstantial cold cuts, think again. In addition to the various meats and cheeses, you’ll find seasonal veggies and pickles, fresh hard boiled eggs, and hearty local salads drizzled with local pumpkin seed oil. 

These cold cut platters are often a work of art. The tasty tradition of Brettljause features many traditional Austrian foods such as Käferbohnen, or what Austrians call runner beans, or sometimes beetle beans since they look like large black beetles. They’re hearty, filling, healthy, and so delicious.

Heuriger or Buschenschank? What’s the difference?

Most buschenschanks in Austrian wine regions open in the early Fall around the time of the harvest and close for the winter months. Some with guest rooms, however, remain open year round. 

It’s the early Fall when the action begins, with the first pressing of grapes, resulting in a drink known as stürm (like a thunder schtoorm). This is the first fermentation and can be a bit sweet and very fizzy. Even though it’s higher in alcohol content than regular wine, Austrians look forward to this beautiful time of year in South Styia and drink stürm with gusto. 

Buschenschanks are anything but formal, and you’re sure to make a few new friends. The Austrians love buschenschanks, and now, so do we.

So if you’re going to be enjoying wine and stürm all day, we highly recommend booking a room for an overnight stay at one of these warm and welcoming buschenschanks. The Südsteirische Weinstraße, South Styria Wine Road, is narrow and winding. And except for the dim lights coming from scattered buildings after dark, it is also unlighted. So don’t drink and drive. Plan a few nights there, and slow travel the South Styrian wine road.

Arriving

Brettlejause and Wine at Buschenschank Trummer, Weingut Trummer, with Jürgen Trummer

Bye-bye

Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours - Published and Forthcoming Postings

ombiasy WineTours: Wine Tour Schedule 2023 - Austria, Germany/East, Burgundy/ Champagne, Germany/ North

Announcement: Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours - 12 Days: May 28 - June 08, 2023 

The Wines of Austria - Presentation by Annette Schiller, ombiasy WineTours, at the 2021 American Wine Society National Conference in Atlantic City 

Wine Producer Austria - Not Only Gruener Veltliner

Summary: Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Schiller’s Favorite Spots to Drink Wine in Vienna, Austria

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After Dinner Drinks at Vis-a-Vis Wine Bar, Vienna - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Vienna: Viaker City Tour and Tour of Schloss Schönbrunn - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Lunch at Restaurant Die Seejungfrau in Jois at Lake Neusiedl - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Vineyard Tour, Cellar Tour and Tasting at Weingut Leo Hillinger, Burgenland, with Jakob Scharner, Diplom-Sommelier - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour, Vineyard Tour and Tasting at Weingut Netzl, Carnuntum, with Franz, Christine and Christina Netzl - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Lunch at Restaurant Mole West at Lake Neusiedl - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Cellar Tour and Tasting at Weingut Anita and Hans Nittnaus, Burgenland, with Anita, Hans and Martin Nittnaus - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Tour and Tasting at Weingut Umathum, Burgenland, with Joseph Umathum - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours 

2 Nights at Schloss Halbturn at Lake Neusiedl: Sekt Reception and two Dinners - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Tour and Tasting at Weingut Steindorfer, Burgenland, with Ernst and Roland Steindorfer - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours 

Light Lunch at Gránátos Étterem at Esterházy Kástely in Fertöd, Hungary: Hungarian Goulash Soup and Esterházy Cake - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

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Tasting at Weingut Straka, Rechnitz, Burgenland, with Thomas Straka - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

High-end Sleeping and Eating in the Vineyard: Wohnothek am Ratschen and Restaurant am Ratschen (16/ 20 Gault Millau), Deutsch-Schützen - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting at Weingut Wachter-Wiesler, Burgenland, with Julia Wachter - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Tour, Tasting and Lunch at Weingut Jalits, Burgenland, with Mathias Jalits - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Tour and Tasting at Weingut Neumeister, Straden, Vulkanland, Steiermark, with Christoph Neumeister - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Dinner with a View at Weinrefugium Brolli, Steiermark - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Tour and Tasting at Weingut Sattlerhof, Steiermark, with Justė Sattler - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Tour and Tasting at Weingut Wohlmuth, Steiermark, with Maria Wohlmuth - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Brettlejause and Wine at Buschenschank Trummer, Weingut Trummer, with Jürgen Trummer - Austria 2023 by ombiasy WineTours

Tasting at Weingut Polz, Steiermark, with Sommelier Philipp Heidenbauer

Tour and Tasting at Weingut Tement, Steiermark, with Sommelier Andy Bodor

Lunch at Restaurant Magnothek/ Weingut Tement, Südsteiermark

Gustav Mahler, Sinfonie Nr.3 at Graz Opera, Steiermark

In Eisenstadt, Burgenland: Tour at Haydn House, Lunch at Restaurant Henrici, Tour at Esterhazy Castle

At Loisium Wine & Spa Resort Langenlois, Kamptal: Impromptu Steininger Sekt Reception with Eva Steininger and Klaus Wittauer

Wine-pairing Dinner at Heurigenhof Bründlmeyer with Chef Jan Pfeiffer, 15.5 Point Gault Millau

Tour and Tasting at Weingut Steininger, Kamptal, with Brigitta Steininger

The Wines of Stefanie and Alwin Jurtschitsch, Weingut Jurtschitsch, Kamptal, Austria

Tour and Tasting at Weingut Stephanie and Alwin Jurtschitsch, Kamptal, with Alwin Jurtschitsch

Lunch at Braugasthaus zum Fiakerwirtin Langenlois, Kamptal

Tasting at Weingut Markus Huber, Traisental, with Markus Huber

2 Days in Dürnstein, Wachau, at Hotel Richard Löwenherz

Martin Mittelbach from the "Tegernseehof" and Klaus Wittauer from "KWSelection" Presented Tegernseehof Wines and Stefan Trummer and Chef Austin Fausett from “Trummer’s on Main” in Clifton Austrian Appetizers at the Austrian Embassy in Washington DC, USA

Vineyard Walk and Tasting at Weingut Tebernseerhof, Wachau, with Owner/ Winemaker Martin Mittelbach

Tour and Tasting at Domäne Wachau, Dürnstein, Wachau

Tasting and Dinner at Weingut Nigl, Kremstal, 13.5 Points Gault Millau

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Tour and Tasting at Weingut F.X.Pichler, Wachau, with Lucas Pichler

Tasting at Weingut Matthias Hager, Kamptal, with Doris Hager

Lunch at Gasthaus Gutmann, Zöbing, Kamptal

Tour and Tasting at Weingut Schloss Gobelsburg, Kamptal, with Stefan Tabery

Farewell Dinner at Café Central in Vienna

German Unity Day 2023 Celebration at the German Embassy in Washington DC, USA

This year, after a gap, due to covid and other factors, Annette and I were able to participate in the German Unity Day 2023 Celebration at the Residence of the German Ambassador to the United States of America. 

Before retiring, I used to be invited as a staff member of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Now, after retiring from the IMF, I am on the guest list of the Embassy as Vice-president of the German Wine Sociery (Washington DC Chapter).

Same procedure as every year: You start in the residence of the Ambassador and move down to the "Bayrischer Biergarten" where the evening ends with good music and Bavarian beer. The party ended at 23:00.

We were joined at our table by Gudrun Engel, the Head of the ARD German TV in Washington DC. 

"Wein-Oktoberfest" of the German Wine Society (Washington DC Chapter) at the German Embassy in Washington DC, USA 

 

Last time we were at the embassy was about 4 weeks ago, at a much more intimite event, the Oktober Weinfest of the German Wine Society (Washington DC Chapter), which took place on the evening of Friday, September 15, 2023,  at the Embassy House of the German Embassy in Washington, D.C.. At the Oktober Weinfest, there were 60 particiapants, at the German Unitiy Day 2023 Celebrations there were thousands.

Pictures: "Wein-Oktoberfest" of the German Wine Society (Washington DC Chapter) at the German Embassy in Washington DC, USA

German Unity Day - Tag der Deutschen Einheit – October 3

German Unity Day, on October 3rd, is the German national holiday, a sort of German Fourth of July. Both the observance date and the holiday are recent. The third day of October has only been a national holiday since 1990. Why this date?

Before the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and German unification in 1990 (known in German as die Wende, the “turning point”), few West Germans even knew the date of their nation’s founding (23 May 1949). It was never celebrated as an official holiday.

East Germany’s national day was October 7 (Tag der Republik), commemorating the founding of the socialist German Democratic Republic in 1949. In West Germany after 1954, the date of June 17 was observed as a national holiday (see below), but it was never anything like July 4th in the US. Since the Nazi era, nationalism and overt patriotism were frowned on by most Germans. Flag-waving was only seen at soccer matches and neo-Nazi gatherings.

The selection of the date for united Germany’s new national day was subject to concerns about events related to Hitler’s rule and Nazi crimes against humanity. Even the day on which the Wall opened in 1989 (November 9) coincided with the date of the infamous Kristallnacht (“night of broken glass”) anti-Jewish pogrom in 1938. Were it not for this unfortunate historical coincidence, November 9 probably would have become the German national holiday.

It would have been a much more appropriate date than the day the German reunification treaty took effect, which is what happened. (By the way, the American Declaration of Independence was approved on July 2, 1776, not on July 4th. The fourth was simply the date at the top of the document, and the date it was sent to the printer. The Declaration was not actually signed until August 2.)

Only One Nationwide Holiday

German Unity Day (Tag der Deutschen Einheit) is the only federal, nationwide holiday in Germany! All other bank holidays in Germany are determined by the states (Bundesländer), even if some of them are observed nationwide by all the states. German Unity Day is the only holiday mandated by federal law.

Einigungsvertrag (German Unity Treaty)

The 1990 treaty that officially unified East and West Germany and made Berlin a new Bundesland (state) and the capital of the Federal Republic of Germany was signed on August 31 and went into effect on September 29, 1990. The treaty designated October 3 as the day on which the German Democratic Republic officially would become part of the Federal Republic of Germany and subject to that nation’s constitution (Grundgesetz), and that is why the third day of October is now the German national holiday.

Observances

Although you will see German flags flying at the Reichstag building in Berlin and in other public locations, private flags and public fireworks are not a big part of the October 3 celebration. Most people enjoy the day off and spend time with friends and family. Politicians make speeches and there are special TV broadcasts about German history. In Berlin there are usually open-air concerts or other festivities near the Brandenburg Gate.

A unique feature of German Unity Day is an observance in the capital city of one of Germany’s 16 states. Each year the state that is presiding over the Bundesrat (upper house) hosts the celebration, which includes a Bürgerfest (citizens festival).

Key Dates in German History

1871 | Following the establishment of the German Empire (Deutsches Reich) there was no official national holiday, but Sedantag (commemorating a significant victory at the French town of Sedan during the Franco-Prussian War on 2 September 1870) was traditionally observed as the Prussian national day.

9 November 1918 | Proclamation of the Weimar Republic following WWI; the constitution was approved on 31 July 1919. The national day was 11 August, the date when President Friedrich Edert signed the Weimar constitution in 1919.

9 November 1938 | Kristallnacht (“night of broken glass”), a nationwide anti-Jewish pogrom conducted by the Nazis in 1938.

17 June 1953 | East German workers’ revolt; the uprising was crushed by the Soviets. In 1954, the date became a West German holiday known as “Tag der deutschen Einheit”. In 1990 there were two “German Unity” days: 17 June and 3 October.

31 August 1990 | The German Unity Treaty (Einigungsvertrag) is approved. It makes October 3rd the official date of German reunification and the new German national day, now called “Tag der
Deutschen Einheit” or German Unity Day.

Source: https://www.german-way.com/history-and-culture/holidays-and-celebrations/german-unity-day/

German Unity Day 2023 Celebration at the German Embassy in Washington DC, USA 

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