The Gsellmann winery is located in Gols in the Burgenland wine region of Neusiedlersee, Austria. The winery was called Gsellmann & Gsellmann until 2005 and was then separated into two wineries: Gsellmann Matthias and Gsellmann Andreas. Andreas Gsellmann’s family has been producing wine since 1800 and operates 21 hectares of vineyards in Gols, in the Pannonian basin, where wine has been produced for 2,000 years and which was part of Hungary until 1921.
The nearby Lake Neusiedl moderates the hot, dry summers and the strong winds aerate the vineyards. The gravelly soils were created from deposits from the retreating Pannonian Sea and offer excellent drainage. Three quarters of the vineyards are planted with the red wine varieties Zweigelt (main variety with 35%), Blaufränkisch, St. Laurent and Merlot, and one quarter with the white wine varieties Pinot Blanc, Neuburger, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Traminer, Welschriesling and Mischsatz. The wines of the estate were certified organic in 2006 and biodynamic in 2011 according to the guidelines of the organic association Respekt-BIODYN, which brings together young, dynamic and undogmatic winemakers in Austria, Germany and Hungary.
Andreas Gsellmann, son of Hans and rethinker of biodynamics, is the manager of the winery and responsible for the vinification. He joined the family winery in 2005 after an internship with Count Stephan von Neipperg in Saint-Émilion. This stay in France also led to the adoption of biodynamic farming at the Gsellmann estate. Hans, co-founder of PANNOBILE, a federating alliance of nine visionary wineries in Gol, passed on all his knowledge to him when he joined the winery and recommended three things to him First: Follow your own path. Second: Do it with like-minded people. Third: Always treat nature with care and respect. Following this advice, Andreas started to search for his own approach to farming, which he found in the biodynamic approach. He learned to understand it better from the pioneer of biodynamics himself, Andrew Lorand. As a winemaker, his personal goal is to harmonize traditional winemaking with the biodynamic way of working and living. Simply to make wine that expresses and respects the terroir.
In light of Andreas’ growing success, Hans has confidently handed over the winery to him in 2019.