Name of Implementing Organization:
Florian Profitlich & Edda Müller
Type of Implementing Organization:
Private Company
Country:
Germany
Region:
Uckermark
Year of implementation:
2010 - ongoing
Target Group:

Tourists of the region, Locals

Funding:

Mostly private – Owner applying for funding as possible to develop his growing business ideas

Gutshof Kraatz tavern and restaurant
Summary:

Welcome to the Kraatz estate !

100 inhabitants, a cider press, an inn and two holiday homes.Welcome to the Uckermark! Eat - drink – sleep.

Winery:

Our press house is located in a listed barn on the Kraatz estate. The building was probably built around 1870. It therefore dates from a time when work was still done entirely manually by people with the help of draught animals. The building has not been used as a barn for a long time. Today we process old apple and pear varieties as well as quinces into juice and wine.

For many of our products, modern table fruit - as we know it from the grocery trade - is aromatically unsuitable. That is why we almost exclusively use old varieties from orchards and gardens in the region. Only with the quality of the old, highly grown apple and pear varieties can we achieve the variety of flavours and intensity of our wines and juices.

Our fruit grows in orchards, along field paths and in gardens in the region. We harvest most of it ourselves - some old varieties we buy from certified organic fruit growers.

Take a holiday. Enjoy pure nature in the Uckermark.

Lakes, fields and forests:

Discover cranes and tree frogs, listen to the nightingale and hear the toads calling - explore the region, whether on foot, by bike or by boat. Browse in the antiquarian bookshop, drink coffee or fresh herbal tea. Enjoy home-baked cakes and handmade ice cream or drop by the studios of the local artists.

You can spend your holidays in the premises (for 2 to 6 people) or in the farmhouse (for up to 8 people) of the Kraatz estate.

Wine tavern, Restaurant, Café & Farm Shop:

We spoil you with homemade wines and juices from more than 30 old apple varieties. Enjoy our seasonal cuisine made from fresh regional ingredients - from game sausages to apple strudel. We bake fresh cakes for tea or coffee. You can linger here at any time of year, in winter by the open fire and in summer on the terrace under the roses.

Strengths

Gutshaus Kraatz not only produces, but also brings tourism and locals into the village with its agrotourism, collating rural tourism in guest houses and a visiting point at the winery of high quality fruit wines. These wines are sold throughout the region, with a good reception and presence p.e. in a large market such as Berlin that demands environmentally friendly quality products. The strong identity of this creative niche product make it sustainable, with no funding needed. However, to expand, funding is used in the slow growth of making the area more attractive to locals as well as tourists.

The added value to the rural area lies also in the renovation and recovery of old houses, responding to the lack of accommodation in the area. With the slow growth, job offers develop for locals for both, qualified professionals and low-skilled workers. The networking amongst businesses and producers in the region strengthens everyone in the area in this very personal approach and boosts economic growth.

The idea of working with available, unused resources brings a high ecological impact about, in the  revitalization and requalification of territory and orchards, improving bio-diversity in preserving old fruit species in the area.