Your wines are very popular in the region. What’s the secret to your success?
We build on tradition and protect our good name. My philosophy is to make honest, quality wine at a reasonable price. I much prefer when a customer buys two bottles for 180 CZK each, drinks them, and comes back a week later—rather than selling one bottle for 400 or 500 CZK that ends up sitting in their wine rack for a while.
Personally, I’m a fan of young wines with primary aromatics, meaning those that are “young” for two to three years. But you have to bottle them at their peak condition.
Your wines have received many awards at wine competitions and exhibitions. To what extent does this affect customer interest?
I think success at exhibitions doesn’t help winemakers much economically. In my opinion, there are just too many different competitions and shows. Customers start to lose track of them. I prefer local exhibitions—we have most of our customers here. Among the larger wine shows, we took part in “Král vín” and even had some champions there. But I’m not opposed to submitting wines to various competitions. Recently, for example, we brought home three gold medals from the Meditrina competition in Velké Pavlovice—for our Gewürztraminer, Florianka, and Riesling. That competition is unique because it’s judged exclusively by women—female tasters.
You are a family business, and your livelihood depends solely on your vineyard. Is there a big difference between you and winemakers who started making wine because they have a successful company in another field and invested their capital into wine?
Yes, there definitely is a difference. While we continued the family tradition, we started our own business from scratch. Whatever we earned, we reinvested. In 1992, we started with a single cellar—and we didn’t even own it. Back then, everyone believed they’d sell 30,000 bottles a year at 300 crowns each and get rich. But that’s not how it works. We have to offer a much wider assortment in various price categories. In 2006, we bought a former irrigation pumping station, completely renovated it, and in 2007 we processed our first harvest there. From then on, things snowballed—we had to take out loans, managed to get a few grants. We always made wine with the goal of selling it and having the means to continue building. Every investment had to make economic sense. We build gradually and thoughtfully.
That also relates to the fact that every winery has its own story. Some can afford major investments—whether into architecturally impressive buildings or powerful marketing—because they have financial backing from other industries or more secure funding.
Of course, those wineries attract more media and public attention. That’s not inherently a bad thing, but it can create a slightly distorted image. It affects public perception, giving the impression that winemakers live in luxury.
It’s within that context that proposals sometimes arise—like introducing an excise tax on still wines—which could be devastating for small and mid-sized wineries. Fortunately, it hasn’t happened yet, but the discussion is ongoing. Right now, we’re facing a situation where wine is no longer tax-deductible as a promotional gift. It’s not something that will break us, but it is another challenge we have to deal with.
Do you adapt to demand, often influenced by fashion trends, or do you prioritize offering your original wines?
Something in between. We’re seeing a strong return to red and dry wines. But we definitely don’t want to simply copy what customers demand. We want to guide them—partly by returning to our traditions. That means focusing on Riesling varieties, which have historically been tied to Polešovice. We also try to raise awareness in the context of the entire domestic wine industry. Nearly 70% of the wines on the Czech market are imported, and we want people to drink more of our local wines. Unfortunately, for the average customer, the main deciding factor is still the price…
What exactly does such customer education involve for you?
For example, we educate through guided tastings. For a winemaker, the best approach is always to bring customers to their “home turf.” We also offer accommodation—we have two guesthouses. Taste should be connected with experience. When you open a bottle of wine at home that you bought directly from a winemaker, you remember where you got it, what the place was like, and maybe you’ll return someday. It’s a completely different feeling compared to buying wine anonymously in a wine shop. We build on that experience with added bonuses, such as our “Delivery to Your Doorstep” service—home delivery of our wines throughout the country.
Polešovice is also known for its grapevine breeding station. Which is the most famous variety that originated there
I’m very proud that my great-great-grandfather was involved in its founding. The station is mostly associated with the name of engineer Křivánek. (A grapevine breeder who developed, for example, the popular Moravian variety Muškát moravský—originally called Mopr—as well as Sevar, and table grapes like Vitra, Olšava, and Pola.) His most famous variety is Muškát moravský, which is the second most successful local crossbreed after Pálava. We also grow his Sevar variety, a cross between Seyve Villard (a French interspecific variety often used in breeding, known for adding disease resistance) and Saint Laurent. It’s a very aromatic red wine variety, which for some may be a bit unusual.
The Wine Breeding Station Ltd. was founded in 1922 with the original aim of combating the devastation of vineyards by phylloxera. From 1957 until its privatization, the station focused primarily on maintenance breeding, breeding research, and the development of new grape varieties.
Engineer Křivánek also bred the variety Florianka here, a cross between Early Red Veltliner (also known as Chasselas Rouge or Večerka) and Müller-Thurgau. We currently grow 1,900 vines of it, which accounts for 15% of its total area in the Czech Republic. The license for maintenance breeding is held by Radim Masařík in nearby Blatnice. The variety was originally called Morava, but was later renamed after the vineyard site Florianka in Blatnice. Many people believe the grape was named after the Florianka lookout tower above Polešovice, but in fact, the lookout was named after the vineyard. Despite the characteristics of both its parent varieties, Florianka is considered a top-quality grape.
Which grape varieties truly belong to this terroir?
Primarily Riesling. Historically, it was a major source for Bzenecká lipka. (The name comes from the traditional Czech term for Riesling — “Lipka.” The original label even featured a drawing of a linden tree by Adolf Kašpar. The branded wine Bzenecká lipka is not a cuvée; it contains only Riesling, editor’s note.) During the Easter wine tasting event here, Riesling consistently has the highest representation. And of course, there’s also Moravian Muscat. We also produce excellent Traminers — every time I submit them to a competition, they win awards.
If you believe that only the grape varieties truly suited to a given region should be cultivated, would you say you’re a supporter of the appellation system — the “French-style” classification of origin?
Right now is actually the time when such an appellation system is being developed. But I think people don’t even really understand the current “German-style” classification.If the introduction of appellations helps people take more interest in wine, then I’m all for it. Otherwise, I’m neutral on the matter. But I’m not sure whether the average customer would understand such a classification. Unfortunately, the only criterion for most of them tends to be price.
What’s your biggest concern?
The things you can’t control. For example, the increasing amount of paperwork every year. But for all winemakers and farmers, the biggest concern is definitely the weather. It’s always been said that good wine is born in the vineyard, and in my opinion, that’s truer today than ever. The weather has been quite unpredictable in recent years. Vegetation starts earlier, which increases the risk of spring frosts; then come possible hailstorms and extreme summer heat. That shortens the growing season, and if we want to produce dry wines with a delicate acidity — which, as I mentioned, is the current trend — we have to harvest earlier, ideally already in September, as we did in 2024 (whereas in earlier years we used to finish harvesting around November 10). You can never make dry wine from overripe grapes. So we need to preserve a reasonable sugar level and freshness, which isn’t easy when everything ripens at once. In such situations, machine harvesting is a huge help — especially thanks to the speed. Without it, it would be very hard to manage today.
And your greatest joy?
I’m glad that even from the difficult 2024 vintage, we managed to produce wines we’re proud of — especially dry wines. It always makes me happy when customers return to us, enjoy our wines, and place their trust in us. But what brings me the greatest joy is that the next generation is already working in our family winery. Our children are continuing the tradition while also taking on things we no longer have as much time for — like shaping the brand’s new direction and rebranding. And what’s especially valuable to me is that they have a real palate; they even participate in judging wine competitions. At the same time, they’re interested in industry trends, eager to keep learning, and motivated to move the winery forward.
Author: Martin Severa
Photo: Jana Vaďurová
