Wachau

The Wachau is an approximately 33-kilometre-long section of the Danube Valley between Melk and Krems in Lower Austria. The narrow, winding valley is enclosed by hills and shaped by steep vineyard terraces. Viticulture is concentrated along the Danube from Schwallenbach via Spitz, Weißenkirchen and Dürnstein to Unterloiben; further vineyards lie on the opposite bank. Near Spitz, the Spitzer Graben branches off towards Gut am Steg and Viessling, turning towards the interior of the country.

The region lies in the transition zone between Atlantic and Pannonian climate influences, with the Pannonian influence decreasing from east to west. The Danube valley brings in warm, dry air from the east, while cooler and more humid air flows in from forested side valleys. This air circulation contributes to marked temperature differences between day and night.

The documented vineyard sites of Vinea Wachau lie between 198 and 508 metres above sea level. Many terraces are built on weathered crystalline rock, including Gföhler gneiss, granite as well as quartz-, feldspar- and mica-containing material. In east-facing leeward slopes, loess occurs; in deeper and flatter areas of the valley, loess and alluvial sands occur.

Dry stone walls divide up the steep vineyards, enable terrace viticulture and shape the cultural landscape. Green Veltliner and Riesling are the leading grape varieties of the Wachau. For Wachau DAC wines, exclusively hand-harvested grapes from the Wachau wine-growing region must be used.

The Wachau DAC, legally introduced in 2020, is divided into region wine, village wine and vineyard wine. As village sites, among others Loiben, which includes the cadastral communities of Oberloiben and Unterloiben, as well as Spitz can be stated on the label. Vineyard wine comes from a single named vineyard site; it may not be enriched and must consist of either Green Veltliner or Riesling. Vineyard wine is also subject to the additional requirement that no perceptible influence of wood may occur; village wine may show no or only barely perceptible influence of wood.

The traditional categories Steinfeder, Federspiel and Smaragd refer to dry white wines, which are distinguished primarily by natural alcohol content and style. Steinfeder is the lightest category at no more than 11.5 per cent by volume, Federspiel generally lies between 11.5 and 12.5 per cent by volume, and Smaragd has at least 12.5 per cent by volume.

Vinea Wachau Nobilis Districtus was founded in 1983 as an association of Wachau wine producers. UNESCO inscribed the Wachau cultural landscape on the World Heritage List in 2000. It preserves evidence of the development of viticulture and settlement over more than two millennia. According to UNESCO, the present-day landscape of vineyard terraces developed from about the eighth century onwards, when Bavarian and Salzburg monasteries farmed the slopes.