White flowers and white wine marked the beginning of the meeting at the Regional Office of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship in Dresden, organized on March 27, 2023.
The program of this event promoting both regions included a concert by young musicians from the Ryszard Bukowski State Music School of Second Degree in Wrocław, held in the beautiful hall of the State Chancellery. The guests from Saxony and Lower Silesia then came to the office, located in the Forum am Carolaplatz building, for a presentation of Lower Silesian wines and refreshments featuring Easter dishes prepared by representatives of local action groups from Lower Silesia.
The Spring Event encouraged participants to discover the flavors of Lower Silesia and Saxony and to visit the two friendly partner regions.
The Lower Silesian Office in Saxony
Lower Silesia and Saxony can boast more than 22 years of cooperation, while the capitals Dresden and Wrocław have been connected by a city partnership agreement for more than 62 years. The Regional Office of Lower Silesia in Dresden has operated since 2020. All of the office’s activities are closely connected with organizing a range of business missions and study visits for small and medium-sized enterprises from the region.
During the official part of the meeting, Michał Bobowiec, chairman of the Foreign Cooperation Committee of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship Regional Assembly, spoke about the Spring Event organized by the Regional Office of Lower Silesia.
“Today we will present traditional Easter dishes to our friends from Saxony. And perhaps most importantly, during the tasting it will be possible to try white wine from Lower Silesia. Several winemakers are with us, because the wine industry is developing very well in Lower Silesia. There are more than 30 vineyards, and today we will present four of them,” said the local government official.
Michał Bobowiec also spoke about the benefits resulting from the office’s work.
“Above all, entrepreneurs benefit from our activities by gaining new contacts and establishing connections between businesses in Saxony and Lower Silesia,” explained Michał Bobowiec. “These are also very enjoyable cultural exchanges, like today’s event, when students from the Music School can be present here. The impact of events organized by Saxony’s twin office in Wrocław is also interesting,” the local government official added.
As part of the activities of both offices, joint trips to tourism and food fairs are organized.
“Joint applications are also submitted to the European Union, and some events are organized using dedicated EU funds for tourism or cultural activities,” Michał Bobowiec added.
Winemakers from Lower Silesia presented their products
Four wineries from Lower Silesia presented their products during the meeting at the Regional Office of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship in Dresden: two young vineyards from the Trzebnica Hills, established in 2015; a vineyard founded in 2002 in the southern part of the Dalkowskie Hills range; and the oldest of the vineyards presented, founded by Mike Whitney and a group of associates from California.
The vineyard of Tomasz Pilawka and Dorian Zięba is located in the beautiful Trzebnica Hills, characterized by an exceptional microclimate and the longest growing season in Poland. It took the winemakers Tomasz and Dorian two years just to find a suitable location. The vineyard welcomes guests almost every weekend during the season, from May to September. Tours of the vineyards and winery are organized, as well as wine and snack tastings by arrangement.
Another vineyard in the Trzebnica Hills occupies two parcels with a combined area of 2.4 hectares. The first lies 300 meters east, beyond the village of Krakowiany, in an area with numerous undulations. Most of it is terraced. The second is located in the village itself, on a plot with excellent sun exposure. Both sites, with very good loess soil, allow the vines to grow without stress and provide an adequate supply of water and minerals.
The idea behind the vineyard in Radwanice is to produce natural wines without adding sugar, clarified through natural sedimentation and racking off the lees, reflecting as fully as possible the character of the grape varieties from which they are made and the vineyard’s terroir—the combination of microclimate, soil and terrain.
The vineyard has been operated by its owner, Mike Whitney, and a group of associates since 1995. His aim was to combine his love and knowledge of wine with the ideal conditions of southwestern Poland. Thus he created Adoria Vineyard, combining traditional grape-growing and winemaking techniques with the latest technology. When visiting Adoria, you can see with your own eyes that the local wines mature in oak barrels beside the most modern winemaking equipment.
A trip to the Dresden area to visit a vineyard? Wackerbarth Palace invites you!
A visit to Wackerbarth Castle was an attraction of the Spring Event.
In the middle of the Radebeul vineyards, in Saxony’s Elbe Valley, lies a fairy-tale palace and park complex: Wackerbarth Castle, with the Belvedere pavilion on the vineyard slope. Its construction was commissioned by August Christoph Count von Wackerbarth in the 18th century, during the heyday of Dresden Baroque. As the count belonged to the circle of Augustus the Strong’s most trusted associates, the Saxon court often held lavish celebrations here. As Europe’s first vineyard with visitor attractions, Wackerbarth Castle presents 850 years of viticulture in Saxony. In Germany’s second-oldest sparkling-wine producer, grapes undergo fermentation until they become a classic sparkling beverage. A variety of events encourage visitors to spend time here. Guests can immerse themselves in the Baroque atmosphere and enjoy culinary specialties and fine wine.
Martin Junge, a communications specialist, spoke about the vineyard, its advantages, development, challenges and extensive year-round events program.
“We cannot change the wind, but we can set the sails differently,” Martin Junge said about the challenges facing wine producers. “We focus on tourism and welcome more than 190,000 guests a year to numerous events, tastings, concerts and family activities organized at our vineyard. We propose immersing oneself in our history, understood not as conveying dry facts, but as evoking the experiences and emotions associated with shared human experience,” the specialist added.
The extensive program of tours and events organized at Wackerbarth Palace can be followed on social media and on the vineyard’s website: schloesserland-sachsen.de
The Lower Silesian Beer and Wine Route is created by the Lower Silesian Vineyards Association in partnership with the Lower Silesian Craft Breweries Association. The project was co-financed from the budget of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship self-government.