Paul Achs

HISTORY 

In 1991, at 22 years old, Paul Achs took the lead of his family winery in Gols, Austria, where they had been working in the wine industry since 1684. Gols is a small winemaking village located in the Neusiedlersee district of Austria’s Burgenland region, 60 km (37 miles) southeast of Vienna near the Hungarian border. Burgenland used to be in Hungary until 1921 when it got handed to Austria. Prior to joining the family winery, Paul had worked in California at the Pat Paulsen winery in the Russian River Valley. While there, Paul learned to produce red wines of the highest quality, specifically Pinot Noir. Upon taking over, he transformed his estate from a majority white wine production to red wine. The area was traditionally known for dessert wines, but he had identified significant potential for red wines and dry Chardonnay on the hillside vineyards around Lake Neusiedl, such as Altenberg, Ungerberg, Spiegel, and Gabarinza, with local grapes -Blaufränkisch, Zweigelt and St. Laurent. Today, acclaimed as a specialist in the Blaufränkisch grape, Paul Achs has planted 90% red grapes and 10% Chardonnay in his vineyards in Gols. In the mid-1990s, he was also essential in the formation of several growers’ associations, including Pannobile, raising the profile of wines produced in the Neusiedlersee area. In 2006, Paul joined the Respekt-BIODYN group and started farming all 25 hectares (61.8 acres) biodynamically. In recognition of his elegant wines, Falstaff awarded Paul Achs “Vintner of the Year” in 1994. www.paul-achs.com Paul Achs sees himself as a “biographer” of his wines. He “writes stories” from the material that the grapes provide him with, and that material turns out differently every year, marked by his individual vineyards with soils of sand, gravel, clay, and chernozem. The continental climate also influences it with its many hours of sunshine that guarantee mature wines. 

SUSTAINABILITY

Paul Achs Senior (Paul’s Father) and his father (Paul’s Grandfather) raised livestock and used the stable manure in the vineyards to naturally fertilize their land, which was standard practice. In 2006, the Paul Achs winery received biodynamic certification for their meticulous care and thoughtfulness in tending to their vines and winemaking process. Today, Paul believes a vital soil supports the ripening process of the grapes in a very positive way: instead of bare earth, which radiates heat, the wall of leaves and the berries are kept cooler by a soil covered with a variety of plants. In heavy rain, the soil remains stable and is not washed out. In order to create these biodynamic spaces, the winery avoids herbicides, choosing to remove weeds either mechanically or by hand. The creation of green spaces in the vineyards was, and still is, a matter of importance to Paul and all his employees. Paul contributes to the biodiversity and revitalization of the vineyard’s soil by taking measures to farm and cultivate in the most natural way possible. Their belief is that mindfulness and respect for nature create and preserve values.