Saffron, the red gold from Leogang

The saffron is doing well here

It is early in the morning. Georg Wölfler, his wife Carina, their son Samuel and Georg’s mother Monika are out in the saffron field, as they so often are in autumn. Every day, they are eager to see how many flowers they might find that day. These are then harvested by hand and later processed together with the whole family in the cosy living room. Today, in the mist, some of the beautiful, crocus-like flowers have opened, revealing the red saffron threads at their centre; the family is pleased. The mist and the Pinzgau climate in general suit the saffron well, although at first glance one might expect it to thrive in more exotic climes.

From Austria back to Austria

After all, who would have thought that Austria was known for saffron in the Middle Ages? Monika, too, was astonished when she heard about it in a documentary a few years ago. Until about 100 years ago, Austria was in fact one of the most important saffron-growing regions and was particularly renowned for the outstanding quality of the saffron grown there. Nowadays, 90 per cent of this valuable plant is grown in Iran. After watching that documentary, Monika couldn’t get the idea of growing saffron locally out of her head. She told her family about it and was met with immediate enthusiasm. Her brother, Leo Mayrhofer, a farmer, was able to provide the land, and it was he who, on his own initiative, planted 250 saffron bulbs to kick things off, surprising the family with the harvest. The area planted with saffron at the Ottinghof now covers 600 m².

Red threads, yellow colouring

We’re standing right next to this patch today, and the Wölfler family are telling us all about this plant, which is so rare in our part of the world. It’s not just the fact that it loves mist and shuns direct sunlight that amazes us. It’s also that saffron cannot be propagated artificially and that there is only one variety of it. Or that it is said to have antidepressant and mood-lifting effects. Above all, however, saffron is valued for its use in the kitchen as a precious spice, whether in risotto, with fish, in milk bread or as saffron sugar for all manner of desserts. What’s fascinating is that the red threads colour the food yellow, and only the tiniest amounts are needed to achieve this.

Saffron as a family project

The lilac-coloured saffron flowers have been harvested, and now it’s off to Great-Grandma Lisi’s cosy parlour. This is where the whole family gathers and everyone lends a hand. The red saffron threads are plucked from the flowers and then dried in a dark room. The people of Leogang then lovingly pack the ‘red gold’ into 0.1 g tins in handmade little boxes. In the first year, the organic saffron sold out within two weeks. Interest remains high this year too. The spice is no longer sold solely to retail customers but has, for some time now, also been supplied to the catering trade. The first of the many quality-conscious restaurateurs to take it up was Andreas Herbst from the Riederalm , who uses exclusively regional produce in his restaurant “dahoam” and immediately showed great interest in the local saffron. Hans Jörg Unterrainer from the Kirchenwirt was also immediately enthusiastic about the red gold from Leogang.

Quality over quantity

It remains to be seen exactly where the Leogang Safran family’s journey will take them. What is clear, however, is that quality and the joy of what they do will always be their top priorities. “We don’t want to end up on the supermarket shelves,” Georg is certain. The family would much rather continue to have direct contact with their customers and delight many people with the ‘red gold’ from Leogang.

Contact

Mayrhofer & Wölfler family
Otting 3
5771 Leogang
T: +43 660 60 65 840

safran.leogang@gmail.com

The Leogang organic saffron is also available in the farm store of the Ziefer farmer:

Zieferhof

Fam. Perwein
Otting 7
5771 Leogang

Opening hours:
Tuesday 10 AM - 12 PM
Friday 2 PM - 5 PM

Photos: Michael Geißler