The first mentions about wine-growing in Brno and its surroundings dates back to the 13^th century. The significance of wine-growing in the Brno region is witnessed by the fact, that a number of villages including surrounding parts of Brno have in their coat-of-arms or on seals various wine symbols: grapes, wine knifes etc.
In Brno the wine region we recognise has two natural centres. The first one is Zidlochovice - to which belong for example the villages of Blucina, Hrusovany u Brna and Zabcice. The quality of local loess and sandy soils are fertile for aromatic types, like for instance Irsay Oliver, Moravian Muscat, Palava and Traminer.
The second centre surrounds Dolni Kounice, lying on the minerals of the Czech Massif, where they grow the best quality blue species in Moravia, above all Game, Zweigeltrebe, Portugees Blue and Andre. Development of wine-growing in Dolni Kounice was connected with the famous Premonstraterian monastery, which gave its name to the local trade mark wine.
Apart from that traditions of wine-growing are kept up to the present day in many smaller villages around Brno. A special feature of this wine-growing area is the fact, that no large producer exists here. The Brno region, which has a characteristic domain of small and middle size wine-growers, is sometimes mysteriously written in some printed materials as being the largest wine-growing area in the Czech Republic. From the point of view of grape-growing what matters most is the area of planted vineyards - and from this point of view the Brno region with its 600 hectares is considered to be a middle size area. Just to compare: the largest area of the Moravian region, called the Mikulov area, has an extent of 2 600 hectares. The second one is Velke Pavlovice and it has 2 333 hectares of vineyards (and by the way the biggest number of registered wine-growers in the republic: 5 846). In third position is the Znojmo area with 1 852 hectares, followed by the Mutcnice area (850 hectares), the Straznice area (604 hectares), the Podluzi wine-growing area (555 hectares), the Kyjov area (443 hectares), the second smallest Bzenec area (365 hectares) and the tiniest one is the Uherske Hradiste area (165 hectares).

Mikulov's excellent wines
The wine of Mikulov is extraordinary in many recpets. Grapes have been grown on the slopes of the Palava Hills for a thousand, maybe two thousand years. The warm, lime-rich soil provides ideal conditions for well-ripened grapes, ensuring the best wine. In the cellars bellow the Palava lie the real treasures, hidden in barrels, produced the same way today as throughout centuries.
The viticulture educational route runs through the picturesque villages under the Palava Hills and may be travelled on foot, by bike or by car. There are eighteen information boards to tell you much about traditional wine-growing and viticulture in the Mikulov area. The importance of this tradition is reflected in the standing viticultural exhibition in the Regional Museum in Mikulov. This display contains a great many interesting exhibits, including the unique giant wine vat placed in the Chateau cellars, which has an unbelievable capacity of 1.010 hectolitres. Later on, you can check the truth behind the facts you have learned by visiting one of many wine cellars of the hospitable local wine-growers.