Hegymagas sits in the Tapolca Basin at the foot of Szent György Hill (Szent György-hegy), just 3.1 miles from Lake Balaton. It’s tiny for most of the year, then explodes in population from spring through autumn as wine lovers, hikers, and food hunters flood in. The village stacks its calendar with wine, gastronomy, and heritage events that make weekend planning almost too easy. In 2025, expect weekly markets, cellar tours, tastings, and a June blowout that runs until dawn. Multiple venues across the village will be involved, with flexible dates and details as organizers reserve the right to tweak programs and schedules.
When and Where
Mark your Saturdays. From November through early January, Hegymagas Piac—Hegymagas Market—pops up week after week right in Hegymagas. Dates: 2025.11.01, 11.08, 11.15, 11.22, 11.29; then 2025.12.06, 12.13, 12.20, 12.27; and into the new year on 2026.01.03. Expect local producers, seasonal bites, and bottles worth hauling home. It’s the kind of small-town market where you meet the winemaker who bottled your Riesling and the baker whose sourdough sold out ten minutes ago.
Stay, Eat, Sip
Accommodation, food, and drink are easy to line up. A perennial base camp: Kovács Guesthouse in Hegymagas, open year-round. It’s simple, local, and close to everything—wineries, trails, and the market circuit.
Wine Country, Up Close
Szent György Hill (Szent György-hegy) anchors the Badacsony wine region, and Hegymagas taps straight into its volcanic soul. Several wineries open their doors for tours and tastings, showcasing everything from tiny artisan cellars to larger family estates.
– A boutique cellar works 2×2 hectares—yes, very small on purpose—to keep obsessive control over the vines and the final pour. In a twist for the region, they focus on reds. Book ahead for a cellar visit. Their six-wine flight pulls from the estate’s best bottles and runs roughly two hours, enough time to dive into soil talk, barrel choices, and the house style.
– Family winegrowing and agrotourism stretch across 49.4 acres on Szent György Hill’s sunny southern slopes. You can even book a stay in their guesthouses, bedding down among vines and waking up to vineyard views.
– One of the hill’s smallest wineries aims for hand-crafted, delicate bottles from distinctive local grapes, serving tastings in a setting built for memory. The mood is the point: slow pours, views, and that hush you only get on a basalt hillside at dusk.
– Gilvesy’s volcanic wines have carved out a following since Robert Gilvesy founded the winery in 2012. Shop in the Vinotheque during opening hours or by appointment, and they deliver, too. Tastings are organized on request—no rush, no crowd, just the bottles and the landscape that made them.
Grapes, Styles, and Sleeping Barrels
Hegymagas leans white but doesn’t shy away from diversity. Expect Olaszrizling (Welschriesling), Rizlingszilváni (Müller-Thurgau), Zengő, Tramini (Traminer), Rajnai Rizling (Riesling), Chardonnay, and Rózsakő. One family cellar lists that exact lineup, making it a neat primer on the region’s DNA.
On the bigger side, Horváth Cellar (Horváth Pince) has welcomed wine fans since 1996 and now farms about 44.5 acres. They use modern processing but let some wines rest longer in wooden barrels, coaxing texture and spice from time and oak. If your heart beats faster for structured whites and layered aromas, this is your stop.
Views Included
Nyári Cellar (Nyári Pince) sits on the southern face of Szent György Hill, just 218 yards from Tarányi Cellar and the Lengyel Chapel. They pour both draft and bottled wines, with tastings by reservation. The view alone does half the selling—bring a friend who swears they don’t like wine and watch them reconsider.
Always Open, Always Pouring
One of the hill’s flagship cellars keeps its Vinotheque open every day, all year. From spring to autumn, the refreshed Estate Center hosts Viridárium kitchen, luring gastro and wine tourists with plates designed to match the glass. Think seasonal menus and pairings that highlight the mineral stamp of the hill’s volcanic soils. It’s easy to start with lunch and realize you’ve accidentally stayed through sunset.
Save the Date: Party Till Dawn
Szent György Hill Until Dawn (Szent György-hegy hajnalig) returns June 6–7, 2026. It’s the after-hours celebration that threads visitors through cellars and terraces until the first light hits the lake. Expect tastings, music, and the kind of shared-bench conversations that end in swapped phone numbers and half-remembered toasts. The program will be announced closer to the date, but it’s safe to say: this is the one locals circle in red.
Plan Smart
Hegymagas spreads activities across multiple venues, and programs may change. Book tastings in advance, especially for the smaller cellars. Markets stack up in late autumn and early winter; June’s all-nighter is a crowd magnet. With Balaton only 3.1 miles away, you can pair vineyard days with lake mornings and make the most of a village that doubles down on hospitality when the leaves come out. Organizers reserve the right to change dates and programs, so keep plans flexible—and your glass half full.
