Balaton
Continental, moderated by the lake
The wine hills around Central Europe's largest lake, known for mineral white wines from volcanic basalt soils at Badacsony.
Overview
About Balaton
Lake Balaton is the largest lake in Central Europe, and its northern shore is lined with wine districts: Badacsony, Balatonfüred-Csopak, Balaton-felvidék and others, with Balatonboglár on the southern side. The lake acts as a heat store and mirrors sunlight back onto the vineyards, giving a longer, milder ripening season than the plain would have.
Badacsony, at the south-western end of the north shore, is the most dramatic, with vineyards on the slopes of extinct volcanic buttes. Its wines are mostly white, from Olaszrizling, Szürkebarát (Pinot Gris) and the rare native Kéknyelű, and are marked by high acidity and mineral, smoky notes. The district around Csopak is known for Olaszrizling, and the whole region is a popular summer destination.
Balaton is marked on the map.
Hungary
Shaded: Veszprém, Zala, Somogy. Map units are states, provinces or départements, so a smaller place appears as the larger area that contains it.
The land
Climate & terroir
Climate
Continental, moderated by the lake
Warm summers and cold winters, tempered by the lake, which keeps the shoreline milder and gives long, sunny autumns. The volcanic hills also shelter the vines from cold northerly winds.
Terroir & soils
What the vines grow in
Volcanic basalt on the Badacsony hills, which gives wines a mineral, smoky character, and limestone, marl and red sandstone in other districts around the lake.
Go deeper
Rules, years & producers
Balaton's wine districts are protected origins of their own, each with its own leading grapes.
Badacsony PDO
Volcanic basalt slopes on the north shore, known for mineral white wines.
Balatonfüred-Csopak PDO
A district known for Olaszrizling, on limestone and marl.
Balaton-felvidék and Balatonboglár
Neighbouring districts on the highlands north of the lake and on its southern shore.
What's grown here
Grapes
Each grape's page links back here.
Kéknyelű
Grown mainly on the volcanic slopes of Badacsony on the northern shore, in small quantities, for mineral, long-lived whites.
Olaszrizling
A mainstay around the lake, making dry, mineral whites, often marked by the volcanic soils of the north shore.
Pinot Gris
Known as Szürkebarát, an important white on the volcanic slopes of Badacsony.