respekt – A biodynamic wine movement since 2007
The first talks about a biodynamic association occured many years ago. They were initiated in 2005 by twelve leading winemakers from Austria, and one from South Tyrol. These were Paul Achs, Judith Beck, Kurt Feiler, Karl Fritsch, Michael Goëss-Enzenberg, Gernot Heinrich, Johannes Hirsch, Fred Loimer, Hans Nittnaus, Bernhard Ott, Gerhard Pittnauer, Claus Preisinger and Franz Weninger.
This was based on their search for individual quality in wine. The winemakers mentioned above eventually founded the biodynamic association "respekt" in 2007. In 2009, Andreas Gsellmann and Fritz Wieninger joined the group.
Their first respekt-certified vintage was presented at VieVinum, Vienna's largest wine trade fair, at the Hofburg in 2012.
The high quality level of their wines, and their biodynamic guiding principles - expressed in their common operating principles and above all in their wines - developed a strong attraction over the years, on the one hand for the international trade audience and the other hand on for their winemaking colleagues.
In 2015, four highly renowned winemakers joined, all members of the traditional German wine growers association "VDP. Die Prädikatsweingüter": Clemens Busch from Mosel, Steffen Christmann and Hansjörg Rebholz from Pfalz and Philipp Wittmann from Rheinhessen. Other winemakers are already involved in professional exchanges.
In 2015, we also collectively introduced the extended association name "respekt-BIODYN" to sharpen public perception.
Three additional wineries were accepted into the association in an extraordinary general meeting at the end of 2016: Dr. Wehrheim from Pfalz (also VDP), Hajszan Neumann in Vienna, (the second Fritz Wieninger winery) and Herbert Zillinger from the Weinviertel.
The brothers Martin & Georg Fußer from the Palatinate joined the respekt group in 2018. Their first respekt-certified vintage will be the 2019.
In 2021 the circle will be expanded to include the Jürgen Leiner winery of the southern Palatinate, and the South Styrian Sattlerhof winery. Sven Leiner will bring along his existing biodynamic certification, and has already been respekt-certified with the 2020 vintage. Willi Sattler will remain a "respekt member under conversion" in 2021, and bring his first respekt-certified wine to market with the 2021 vintage. The Foradori biodynamic winery in Trento, with Elisabetta Foradori and her son Emilio Zierock, are joining the group in the middle of this year and will be respekt-certified with the 2021 vintage.
Also at the beginning of 2023, renowned winegrowers joined the group, whose vineyard area thus totals almost 1,150 hectares. These are the Austrian estates Ebner-Ebenauer and Schödl in the Weinviertel, Martin Diwald on the Wagram and the German estate Rainer Schnaitmann in Württemberg.
respekt-BIODYN remains open. To discourse and input within the group, and from outside.
