Green, greener, Austrian wine!

By / Wine + Drinks / September 12th, 2020 / 14
Green, greener, Austrian wine

Clean air, bees buzzing around colorful flowers or a little lizard hiding behind a stone – all this and much more can be found in Austria’s vineyards in the heart of Europe. Because respect towards the environment to keep it healthy for the generations to come is not a trend among Austrian winegrowers, it has always been part of their daily work.

World leader & pioneer

Environmental protection, water purity, healthy and GMO-free food, biodiversity, efficiency is all treated with the highest priority. For this reason it should come as no surprise that Austria is among the world leaders in organic farming: around 23% of the agricultural area and circa 14% of all vineyards are already managed according to organic farming guidelines.*

There is also an official certification scheme for sustainable viticulture in Austria, called “Sustainable Austria”. Winegrowers being certified guarantee for a sustainable production chain: From the vineyard to the bottle, strict ecological, social and economic criteria must be met. When examining 300 international certifications for sustainable winegrowing in 2019, Scandinavian experts chose “Sustainable Austria” as one of only fourteen to meet their high expectations. Today, some 9% of area under vines are cultivated according to the standards of the ‘Sustainable Austria’ certification**.

There is also a growing number of both organic and certified sustainable wine estates. What is more, most grapes are still harvested by hand. Certain winegrowing regions like Steiermark (Styria) and Wachau even implemented mandatory hand-harvesting into their legal regulations for regionally typical wine (DAC).

Tradition & future in every glass

For over two millennia, wine has been a part of Austrian culture. Roman cellars, medieval villages, baroque monasteries, and castles are all part of the typical landscape of its winegrowing regions. Today’s young winemakers are building on deeply rooted traditional knowledge and are combining it with the experience they have gained in oenology schools and wine estates around the world, and they are confidently treading a new path.

Therefore, in every glass of Austrian wine you can taste the combination of century old tradition and the spirit of the young generation. No matter if it is Grüner Veltliner or Riesling from Niederösterreich, Gemischter Satz from Vienna, Blaufränkisch or Zweigelt from Burgenland or Sauvignon Blanc from Steiermark – take a sip, close your eyes and feel the air, hear the bees and maybe you will see the little lizard in an Austrian vineyard.


* Source: Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Regions and Tourism

** Source: Austrian Winegrowers’ Association

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Looking at the small things that make life great and the people who create them.

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