Juliet Viktor Vinery, Mád

Mád, as one of the most important historical settlements in Tokaj-Hegyalja, is home to many of the well renowned wineries in the region. The varied volcanic soils, ideal location and unique microclimate of these areas make them ideal for the production of high quality, exciting wines. In addition to the vineyards, the grapes and the human knowledge that has been honed over the centuries, the vinery building itself is an important element in the creation of the wines. In Mád, as in the rest of the mountain valley, these wineries are mostly located not outside in the vineyards, but rather within the historic fabric of the municipality, in the vicinity of residential and public buildings. As a result, these wineries have a small-town or rural feel, with their own particular bourgeois milieu, and are not primarily factories, but part of the organic and everyday life of the wine-loving community. Juliet Victor is one such winery. It is located in the historic town centre, in the heart of the town, and has been created by renovating and extending an old farmhouse. The building has been designed to preserve the atmosphere of the old building, to fit in with the historic streetscape, to meet the modern challenges of today and to be suitable to house modern technology. The aim was to create a timeless house that could have been there 100 years ago, at the same time it is not archaic but modern in its own way, not hiding the needs of today behind an old cloak. The use of local materials, including the strong presence of Mád limestone on the house, is a good support for the linking of the ages. This mountain valley rock is a major contributor to the character of the wines produced here, thus its role is multilayered.