Special InformationThe Helikon Taverna that used to be in possession of the Festetics family was built according to the plans of KLEN Vilmos in 1819. The press house has a historical background that is the most significant in the wine growing area of the Keszthely Mountain’s southern side.
The building, having many different functions during the post World War II period, has become a Restaurant and Pension of outstanding quality.
The building, a monument, was rebuilt from the cellar of the Helikon-founder Festetics family, therefore today it is considered again as one of the region’s prominent touristic and gastronomic attractions.
The Helikon Taverna has become a popular touristic centre owing to its nice surroundings, as well as the flavours and excellent quality wines of Hungarian cuisine. The picturesque landscape from the pension’s terrace, the quality cultural programmes and painting exhibitions all belong to the view that has been developed by many guests leaving with satisfaction and returning regularly.
“Da Bibere” thematic wine-making and gastronomic exhibition
From October 2013 you can visit the “Da Bibere” thematic wine-making and gastronomic exhibition in the Helikon Taverna. The main thematic elements of the exhibition are the following:
- Regional Grape- and Wine-culture from the Roman Times until Nowadays. The professional content of the exhibition is based on the pieces of art of the Balaton Museum. The rich selection of finding (tools for vine cultivation from Roman times and the Middle Ages, Roman tombstone with vine motif, a rendition of Christ with vine motif from the Middle Ages, ethnographical display cabinets with points of interest) together with the illustrated posters gives an overview of 2000 years of regional viniculture. The most valuable object of the exhibition is the 2000-year-old “Da Bibere” jug which was found in a Celtic tomb in Cserszegtomaj, and which – with its Latin inscription (which means “Give me something to drink”) – refers to the old traditions of wine culture. The 200-year-old, renovated horizontal press found in the cellar that is still in running order today is supposed to demonstrate the grape processing capacity of the cellar.
- Digital contents on museum touch screens. Besides Hungarian, professional contents in English and German are also available on four touch screens. The professional contents of the ethnographical touch screens range from vine-growing through wine-making to wine storage and consumption. The horizontal press touch screen presents how these huge presses were operated in times gone by. The Festetics touch screen (which is the biggest museum touch screen in the country) helps in an interactive way to get to know the Festetics family which played a decisive role in the development of the region. Naturally, there is special emphasis on the history of the Taverna. On a separate screen we transformed old photographs (postcards, photos) into 3D pictures.
- 3D movie room. In our 3D movie room we offer our visitors a unique film experience. Our 5-minute film introduces visitors to the history of the Festetics-family, while in our 3-minute film we present the history of Vonyarcvashegy. Both films offer the unique visual experience of aerial shots filmed from helicopter besides the 3D movie experience.
- Environmental education and preservation. The energy supply of the exhibition area (heating and electrical power) based totally on renewable energy is presented and explained on separate posters. A separate exhibition area (wall research and restoration, as well as “before and after” photos) deals with historic renovation and green operation.
- For children and families. Besides the above exhibition contents and attractions, which are also interesting for children and families, we also had the youngest ones in mind. A big hit with kids is the scale-model of the Taverna built from LEGO blocks (naturally with vineyards and harvesters), and every visitor will have the opportunity to have green box photos with unique backgrounds taken.
- Everything about wine-tasting. Preserving the original function of the cellar and the press-house, adults have the opportunity to taste the best wines in the Balaton area. There are about 100 types of wines in our selection. During tasting our wine glasses allow visitors to get an insight into the various wine styles and what glasses to use. With the help of our aroma samples it will be possible to playfully identify the aromas found in wines.
Pictures from the Helikon Taverna
