Wine, Running, Balaton – Laposa Wine Estate on the Running Expo

‘Our aim is sustainable development and continuous evolution while maintaining perfect harmony with the rhythm of nature.’ – says Zsófi Laposa and her brother Bence. The two winemakers not only represent the Badacsony region throughout their wines – with their team, they reach further.

As organizers of the Dűlőre Futunk (‘Vineyard Run’) charity event and running race taking place in August, they live up to their quoted credo. The 12 kilometer-long challenge offers an amazing panorama of the Káli basin, the volcanic hills and lake Balaton. With their race the Laposas set an excellent example of the new-wave wine marketing, therefore it should come as no surprise that the winery will also be present at the first Running Expo. According to the world-wide trend, sport and wine do not rule out each other, on the contrary, they have much in common. The Portuguese Réccua Douro Ultra Trail and the Marathon du Médoc running-and-tasting located in Bordeaux are two superb examples of this palette, but similar events are held in Italy and Austria, too.

The Running Expo might sound unusual at first, though the concept of such events became fairly popular across the continent – just like the running tournaments organized in wine regions. The famous Le Salon du Running was only a collateral event during the Paris Marathon, but soon after it became one of the major sport festivals of the country. Professionals and amateurs meet, beginners and professionals get together to explore the brand-new sportswear items or listen to the advice of lifestyle consultants and dieticians. These colorful running parades are the ultimate mixture of scientific conferences and family programs – which is exactly what the Hungarian team of the Running Expo would like to create. In France, about 10% of the population runs on a daily basis, meaning that 5.9 million people go for a run every day. In Hungary, this rate is around 1% so far, but the matrimony of wine and running might just be the key to make us start warming up!