Teleki conference in Villány
On November 15, 2024, Csányi Winery, Csányi Foundation and the Association of Hungarian Heritage organised a conference and award ceremony in Villány on the occasion of the Zsigmond Teleki Memorial Day.
Zsigmond Teleki was born in Pécs on 23 September 1854 and started his career as a wine merchant. However, in 1881, under the influence of the phylloxera epidemic, he founded a vineyard in Villány (now Csányi Winery), where he selected resistant varieties by crossing American and European grape varieties, which helped to renew Hungarian and European vineyards. The programme is intended to create a tradition and commemorate the 170th anniversary of Zsigmond Teleki’s birth, and to raise awareness of his life and the history of viticulture and winemaking in Hungary through a competition.
The fruit of almost a year of preparatory work has ripened “like the fruit of the vines that sprouted on the slopes of Villány”, said Béla Debreczeni-Droppán in his welcome speech. On the day of the conference, the event began with a reception of guests, followed by a welcome speech by László Romsics, CEO – Csányi Winery Zrt, László Gázsik – Csányi Foundation trainee and talent, Ida Baloghné Szacsuri, Director of the South ASzC Teleki Zsigmond Agricultural Technical, Vocational and College School, Béla Debreczeni-Droppán, President of the Association of Hungarian Heritage Organisation and Zsolt Balaskó, representative of the Teleki family. All of them emphasised that tradition and wine go hand in hand, and the importance of the fact that Zsigmond Teleki was a true Hungarian patriot and his work is an example for all of us.
Afterwards, Zsigmond Teleki’s schoolchildren gave a presentation in the form of a play about living vines and a revived phylloxera epidemic, underlining that the name of their school defines their past and their future. The event continued with professional presentations:
Lecture 1: Dr János Majdán: The viticultural and significance of Villány (University of Pécs)
Lecture 2: Zoltán Erdős: The memory of the Teleki family (Csorba Győző Library, Pécs)
Lecture 3: Dr. Péter Teszlák: Tradition and Innovation in Hungarian Grape Breeding (University of Pécs, Research Institute of Viticulture and Enology)
Finally, the results of the competition previously announced for students were announced. The competition was open to applicants with one of the following themes:
– The life and work of Zsigmond Teleki
– The history of the Villány vineyard / independent research in a Villány winery
– Wine culture in the Pannonian wine region – wine-related customs
– Grape seed propagation after the phylloxera epidemic
The results were announced by Éva Mikó, Operations Director of Csányi Winery, on behalf of the jury:
1st place Ágoston Tóth – Eszterházy Károly Catholic University
2nd place Zsombor Barkóczy – Csányi Foundation
3rd place Nada Orsulics – University of Pécs
Special prizes were awarded to László Gázsik and Panna Pápai, foundation grantees. The prize winners received a cash prize, the Teleki Memorial Medal established by the Csányi Foundation – presented by Ádám Csányi, member of the Csányi Foundation Board of Trustees – and a certificate of honour. At the end of the ceremony, all applicants received a certificate of honour.
At the end of the conference, László Romsics guided the visitors on a cellar tour, and after lunch we all went up to Szársomlyó Hill, to the former Teleki press house, now owned by Gere Winery. This was the site of the bronze bust of Zsigmond Teleki, erected in 1930 by his sons Andor and Sándor and their admirers. Unfortunately, the statue disappeared in the 1950s, so after nearly 75 years the name of Teleki is once again proclaimed on the inaugurated memorial plaque, created by sculptor István Vanyúr. The unveiling ceremony was attended by the descendants of the Teleki family, Zsolt Balaskó and his father Dr. Márton Balaskó, who laid a wreath. Afterwards, the Baranya Local History Organisation and the presidency of the of the Association of Hungarian Heritage Organisation also laid a wreath of remembrance, followed by the singing of the National Anthem. In conclusion, Attila Gere offered the commemorators a delicious wine at the cellar. The wine was paired with literature – Jázmin Pretz, a Kaposvár grantee, recited Endre Ady’s poem Fuimus.
We would like to express our gratitude for the success of the event to the Csányi Foundation, Csányi Winery, Gere Winery, the Mayor of Villány István Mayer, the Association of Hungarian Heritage Organisation and the participating Foundation staff, without whom this event would not have been possible.
András Gál, mentor
On 15 November 2024, the Zsigmond Teleki Memorial Day Award Ceremony and Conference was held at Csányi Winery in Villány The team from S10 arrived early, and we helped a little with the preparations for the community work of the foundation members from Pécs. Once all the speakers, award winners, guests and organisers had arrived, the programme began. The opening ceremony was followed by interesting and high quality presentations on wine, Zsigmond Teleki and Villány, with expert presentations. Immediately after the presentations, the awards ceremony took place, prizes and certificates were handed out, and the guests received their goodie bags for honouring us with their work and presence. After the presentations and awards ceremony, a short lunch was followed by a tasting of three wines from the Csányi Winery range, and those who had not yet visited the winery had the opportunity to take a small tour of the production process and the cellar, led by the general manager László Romsics. This was a completely new experience for me, as although I had already drunk the fine wine made here, I had never had the opportunity to see the steps of the production and the tools used to make it. Our journey then took us through Ördögárok to the former Teleki villa, where we unveiled a new memorial plaque in honour of Zsigmond Teleki’s 170th birthday, in place of the monument originally erected by his sons. After the wreath-laying ceremony, we paid our respects by singing the National Anthem together. The programme concluded with a glass of wine offered by Gere Winery, during which Jázmin Pretz recited.
Lassu Levente, Kaposvár 1.