Origin Polz
Polz wine estate. Now new since 1912.
Today, we are already the 4th generation of our family dedicated to transferring our idea of excellence into a glass. With our hands. With our soils. With nature.
Since the spring of last year, Erich Polz Jr. has been heading the estate with a crystal-clear vision of guiding all the magnificent potential and valuable know-how inherent to his family's long history and winemaking tradition into a fruitful, robust future. A future for many more generations to come here on the estate. And a delectable future for all lovers of our wines throughout the world.
Erich’s brother Christoph is responsible for the cellar and vinification. Sensitive, calm, with great confidence in every single grape. Because at the Polz wine estate, every single fruit is carefully handpicked as it sets out on the honourable journey to its gratifying destiny. It makes no difference whether we are talking about territory wines typical of the region and variety, full of freshness and liveliness, or about the greatest possible growths of our domain that have aged to perfection. Fact remains: we are passionate about working by hand. And our skills grow directly from our origins in southern Styria, from our terroir.
Sustainability has been a major focus of our work for many years - and in future it will be even more pronounced. This includes gentle grapevine pruning, which we have been practising for more than a decade, the complete avoidance of insecticides and glyphosates, and the conversion of our vineyards to organic farming, which is already being implemented.
In the words of Erich Polz Jr.:
“We have been constantly learning and evolving at the wine estate for 109 years. We work with thriving vines that are planted in healthy soils. We strive for harmony, balance and excellence in our wines with great passion. And we are now also stepping more and more onto paths that have never been travelled before. After all, there is nothing riskier than risking nothing.
Timeline
Great-grandfather Johann Polz am Grassnitzberg laid the foundation stone for our winery
With two yokes and mixed farming, grandfather Reinhold Polz took over our family business after the end of the war, as the only survivor of his brothers. At that time, viticulture still played a subordinate role.
Together with Mrs. Johanna, whom he married in 1957, our company grew slowly but steadily. The focus shifted more and more towards wine. A path that was not undisputed at the time, which our grandparents chose, but they did not allow themselves to be deterred. And despite hard work, the family grew with the business: between 1958 and 1972, mother Johanna gave birth to six children.
At the beginning of the 1980s - in the course of a large Bordeaux wine tasting - the curiosity and incentive for even higher standards in quality viticulture were aroused at Erich and Walter. This fascination led the winery in a new direction when it was taken over at the end of the 1980s - where the focus is not only on the variety, but also on the origin of the wines. Over time, our winery has grown to around 100 hectares. The current size of the company enables us to implement our quality philosophy without compromise.
Christoph Polz now gives our wines his signature and distinguishes himself as a link between the generations. He combines tradition and know-how with the ideas of the fourth generation in the company.
Time to hand over the scepter to the 4th generation and continue the family tradition. Erich Polz jun. has taken on the responsible task of continuing operations. Respect for tradition and looking to the future with all its possibilities are the linchpin of his actions. Brother Christoph Polz is still responsible for the cellar and the wines.