Hochkofler
Signato, Renon
The names of the vineyards.
Life on the remote vineyards above Bolzano was never easy. It was a constant struggle for survival, and perhaps that is why the names of the farmsteads have become etched more deeply in the minds of the local people over the centuries than the surname of the family. “Hochkofler Jerg” or “Hochkofler Luis” – their surname was actually Tutzer, but the link with the vineyard, with that long-nurtured piece of earth, was the more distinctive aspect. The current proprietor is called Jörg Tutzer, or “Hochkofler Jörg” to the locals, and he, too, has to put a lot of energy into his work.
Feeling at home on ideal soil.
“When I think of one of my ancestors, whose entire farmstead burned down during his wedding celebrations in 1865, I can hardly complain,” he says. But as a teenager, who always had to help his parents in the vineyard, he dreamt of becoming a car mechanic. Today, Jörg Tutzer laughs at the idea, because he can hardly imagine a more wonderful life than being a winegrower at the Hochkofler Hof. “It has become my great passion,” he says, and you immediately believe him when he starts talking about his vines, as if about some beloved creatures. He says the light soil of sandy loam with an ideal pH value of 6.3 appeals especially to his Riesling and Pinot Noir vines: “They really feel at home here.”
Harvesting like in the old days.
It goes without saying that not much use can be made of machines on the steep slopes at just under 750 meters above sea-level. “A harvester would not be much use up here,” he says, “and in any case, that’s something I reject. We harvest the way it was done in the past – everything by hand.” After taking over the vineyard, Jörg Tutzer first experimented a little with grape varieties and methods of cultivation. “The fact that I also made mistakes later proved to be an advantage.” How true – because in the meantime his Riesling is regarded as a showpiece wine of the Bolzano Winery.
