Bence Szilágyi is a young winemaker based in Barnag near Lake Balaton, Central Europe’s largest lake. His family moved from Hamburg, and his father began making small batches of wine as a hobby, which inspired Bence.

Although he studied winemaking in Hungary and Germany, his project Grand Vin de Barnag began as an experiment, with the first official vintage in 2017. Discovering natural wine—along with inspiration from Franz Weninger—pushed him to pursue it full-time.

Working with about 3 hectares of organic vineyards (half rented, half sourced), Bence produces around 10,000 bottles annually. His wines are made in a limestone cellar under his house, where slow fermentations last until spring, helping develop structure and aromatics. They are aged in old oak barrels, and since 2020, no sulphur has been added.