How is it that an ascetic, of all people, became the patron saint of Burgenland’s winemakers? And why do we celebrate him in November? A journey through time into biblical worlds, to pragmatic winegrowers, into royal dreams, and the modern DAC concept of the Neusiedlersee wine region of origin.

With the support of the federal government, the province and the European Union.

By ecclesiastical standards, this number is remarkably current: the official register of saints, the Martyrologium Romanum, meticulously lists 6,650 saints and blesseds. Furthermore, it records 7,400 martyrs. This figure was published as “updated” in 2004—the Vatican had felt compelled to recount its own past. Little is known about the exact procedure. One thing, however, was clear beforehand and has merely been confirmed: the saint with presumably the most jobs is Saint Martin.

Indeed, perhaps no one else is responsible for so many different areas of life as Martin of Tours, the cavalry soldier who became famous in the fourth century AD for his generosity. To this day, he is usually depicted as a generous soldier sharing his cloak with a beggar. Thus, it is at least obvious why Saint Martin is considered the patron of the poor. His other so-called patronages, however, seem more like a random collection of titles.

Record Holder Among Patrons

He is the patron of soldiers, cavalrymen and riders, police officers, farriers and blacksmiths, weavers, tanners, tailors, belt, glove and hat makers, drapers, town criers, hoteliers and innkeepers, merchants, beggars, brush makers, shepherds, coopers, millers, travelers, the poor, refugees, and prisoners. The matter becomes truly curious, however, in the tension between indulgence and self-chastisement: Martinus, known in his lifetime as an ascetic, is the patron saint of all teetotalers—as well as winemakers!

One can safely say that Saint Martin has a great deal on his plate. At least in his international “field of work.” In Burgenland, however, Saint Martin has it relatively easy: here, he has always been responsible for the winegrowers. This is a clerical area of responsibility that, upon closer inspection, does much more justice to his life than most other attributions. For Saint Martin was already considered exceptionally close to the people during his lifetime. In 371, he was proclaimed Bishop of Tours in France not by the clergy, but by the people. One can imagine how much the Church appreciated that…

A Sympathetic Rebel

The popularity of Saint Martin is rooted in the ongoing dispute he had with the Church. The peasants loved someone who contradicted the high-born. Added to this is November 11th, the feast day eventually established by the Church. The winemakers around Lake Neusiedl recognized this early on and quickly adopted the sympathetic saint to serve as the patron for their own wine. They gave rise to the story that on the night of November 11th, water and must would turn into wine, the “Sturm” into “Heuriger,” and the “Heuriger” into old wine. It was soon said that one could only toast and say “Prost” starting from Martini.

The long-standing director of the Austrian Museum of Folk Life and Folk Art, Leopold Schmidt, explicitly refers in his writings to the customs of the autumnal saints’ festivals in the region of today’s Neusiedlersee DAC. He writes: “Furthermore, the peasants took part in it, and essential features were preserved by them later on. This includes the festive drink, the ‘Martiniloben,’ which may be addressed as a memory of an old ‘Martinsminne’.”

A Royal Dream

With this, the folklorist, who passed away in 1981, suggests in his scientific work the most likely origin of the Martiniloben, which is particularly popular today in the Neusiedlersee DAC area as a folk festival. He speaks of the “Martinsminne.” This is a term originating from Germany, as the Catholic theologian and folklore expert Dr. Manfred Becker-Huberti explains: “In Cologne, the first new wine was drunk on St. Martin’s Eve,” he says. “This custom was called ‘Martinsminne.’ It links to a legend: Martin is said to have appeared to the Swedish King Olaf Tryggvason in a dream and demanded that he should no longer honor the god Odin with libations, but instead introduce the Martinsminne instead of the Odinsminne.”

Martiniloben as a Rebirth for Tradition and a Pioneer for Typicality of Origin

The fact that we can still enjoy this royal dream today, especially in Burgenland, is partly due to the fact that Burgenland chose Saint Martin as its patron saint. He is thus responsible for the winemakers of Neusiedlersee DAC and the surrounding area in two respects. But a resourceful Burgenlander also had a hand in this: it was Sepp Sailer—together with the Gols winemaker Paul Wendelin—who translated the old custom into the present day on November 11, 1987, and organized a large Martiniloben again for the first time.

The revival of this custom, in combination with the invisible motivator Martin, certainly ensured far more than mere traditional activity. Through the rekindled interest, the winemakers of the area became more aware of their own region again. Topics such as the regional typicality of individual grape varieties and the improvement and assurance of the quality of the wines produced came more to the fore year after year. “And the search by numerous visitors for local specialties and grape varieties also provided the first foundation stones for the Neusiedlersee DAC project, which is so successful today not only regionally,” Sepp Sailer and Paul Wendelin agree in unison.

And the fact that the Zweigelt grape variety for red wine and sweet wines have been chosen today as particularly typical Neusiedlersee DAC wines is more than logical for both of them. “Zweigelt is the leader not only throughout Austria but also here in our Neusiedlersee wine-growing region. And our sweet wines have been among the best for decades—worldwide, by the way,” both note with pride.

In any case, thanks to winemakers, Martiniloben, and the Neusiedlersee DAC project, it is clear today at the latest: Saint Martin’s closeness to the people remains unbroken. After all, more than 50,000 visitors now visit the wine cellars around the lake during these autumn weeks to taste the wines—above all those with the designation of origin and quality Neusiedlersee DAC—and other regional specialties. 50,000 enthusiasts who enjoy the fact that the winemakers of Lake Neusiedl share their treasures with them. And so the matter does have something to do with the generosity of Saint Martin after all: with the idea that you share what you like yourself with others. And with Neusiedlersee DAC wines, that includes quality and typicality.

Martiniloben at Lake Neusiedl 2022: When and where will it be celebrated?

The Martiniloben is one of the best opportunities to discover and taste the variety of Neusiedlersee wines. You can find out which cellar doors are open when and where here.

Everything you need to know about Neusiedlersee DAC specialties

Juicy and deep in fruit or fruit-sweet? Which Neusiedlersee DAC is your favorite? Click through the different grape varieties.

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Neusiedlersee DAC.
Unique Zweigelt. Unique sweet wines.
From the sunny side of Austria. For the delight of every palate.

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