VINEYARD & FARMING
Chateau Chizay was founded in 1995 in the village of Berehove in the Zakarpattia region, the Westernmost region in Ukraine, a few kilometers from the Hungarian border. The first vineyards were planted here more than 2,000 years ago, before the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Chizay has a deep connection to the Zakarpattia region’s long history of winemaking which has been influenced over the years by Hungari- an, Italian, and Austrian traditions. Chizay’s winery was built at the same location as a winery from the 17th century in the Chizay Valley. The Carpathian Mountains are characterized by ancient forests and highland rivers with warm temperatures, moderate rainfall, and protection from cold Northern winds, providing for ideal growing conditions.

GEOLOGY & SOIL
The foothills of the Carpathia Mountains are of volcanic origin and optimal for vines, forcing them to develop deep root systems to reach valuable trace elements. Chizay’s vineyard sites, 272 total hectares planted in 2006, are predominantly volcanic with pockets of limestone and loam and are found in the villages of Berehove (70 ha), Zavydovo (81 ha), and Midianytsia (121 ha). Berehove is 130 km east of the village of Tokaj, Hungary with which it shares the Transcarpathian Mountain range and predominantly volcanic soils. This wine is exclusively from Chizay’s Berehove vineyard, which is at an elevation of 160 meters with a vineyard slope of 10-12 degrees and a south-western exposure.

Chateau Chizay is the first winery in Ukraine to sign on to the Porto Protocol which is committed to promoting sustainability in all aspects of viticulture and winemaking. Chateau Chizay’s commitment includes mulching all vine prunings to be returned to the vineyard as organic fertilizer. They have also begun a tran- sition to solar energy for the winery and electrical vehicles for the farming and winemaking operations.

WINEMAKING
The grapes were hand-picked. After pneumatic pressing settling and racking, the must was fermented for 12 days and aged in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks.