When we talk about the Winkler family, everything is special.
The Winkler-family, this is Verena, her husband Michael and their children Maximilian and Anna-Katharina, wants to break new ground in the South Tyrolean sparkling wine landscape. While the winery under Michael's father Helmuth was called "Sektkellerei Winkler", now it's the Sektmanufaktur Winkler, that is sparkling wine factory Winkler. Here everything is done by hand, from thinning out the leaves, harvesting the grapes, remuage, or turning the bottles at the riddling desk from time to time, labelling the bottles, to packaging and delivering the sparkling wine.
The Winkler sparkling wine factory is a purely family-run business.
Moreover, to dispel any doubts in advance, it will remain. The only exception is oenologist Stefan, who is more or less part of the family though. Everyone here has an important role, Michael's wife Verena, as well as their children Maximilian and Anna-Katharina. Wait a minute: child labour?! No, not at all! However, children have an important position and role in a family business. So the little ones have to renounce a lot; instead of playing outside, for instance, they help with the remuage at their best effort. Sure, it all happens playfully, but it may not always be what children want. Or maybe it is? Instead, son and daughter give back a lot of energy and unconsciously provide a lot of input and ideas. Maximilian in particular is a veritable think tank. Would you like an example? He has vigorously campaigned for sweets to be available at the counter in the wine bistro at home. "The children have to have something while the parents are tasting sparkling wine! The parents can enjoy the sparkling wine undisturbed while the children snack on sweets.
Sektmanufaktur Winkler - the only sparkling wine cellar with sweets!
Sektmanufaktur Winkler
Not quantity, but in quality.
The Winkler family wants to offer the market a high-quality product that the entire team can 100 per cent be convinced of. Long-term growth is planned, not in quantity but in quality. The aim is to improve every year, to maintain at least the current quality, to reach a bottle count of around 20,000 to 25,000 - then it's enough. It is important for the Winklers to be grounded as a family business, to remain down-to-earth and not to chase after large numbers. In this dimension, they can still do everything on their own, without additional staff in the cellar or in sales. Basic credo: avoid stress. Chill out, baby! Together with their partners, the Winklers focus on maximum quality in their vineyards. After all, the Winkler family want to run the sparkling wine factory in a sound and sustainable way, so that they and their customers can enjoy it.