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Austria

Wachau

1 350 ha under vine

Soils
Gneiss and amphibolite terraces with pockets of loess
Climate
Pannonian warmth meets cool northern air in the Danube gorge — hot days, cold nights

On the map

Wachau — 1 350 haLanguedoc — 220 000 haBordeaux — 110 000 haSicily — 98 000 haVeneto — 96 000 haPuglia — 87 000 haSouthern Rhône — 66 000 haRioja — 66 000 haTuscany — 60 000 haLoire Valley — 57 000 haEmilia-Romagna — 50 000 haKakheti — 48 000 haSouth-West France — 45 000 haPiedmont — 43 000 haDouro — 43 000 haChampagne — 34 000 haAbruzzo — 33 000 haUtiel-Requena — 32 000 haBurgundy — 29 500 haProvence — 27 000 haSardinia — 27 000 haFriuli — 25 000 haRibera del Duero — 25 000 haPenedès — 25 000 haPfalz — 23 000 haCampania — 23 000 haAlentejo — 22 000 haMinho — 21 000 haRueda — 20 000 haDão — 20 000 haMarche — 16 000 haAlsace — 15 600 haBeaujolais — 13 500 haBurgenland — 13 000 haUmbria — 12 000 haCalabria — 9 000 haMosel — 8 800 haDalmatia — 8 000 haJerez — 7 000 haCyprus — 7 000 haAttica — 6 500 haFranken — 6 100 haCorsica — 6 000 haTokaj — 5 800 haAlto Adige — 5 600 haValais — 4 800 haNorthern Rhône — 4 400 haRías Baixas — 4 300 haNahe — 4 200 haSussex & Kent — 4 000 haRheingau — 3 200 haBierzo — 3 000 haNemea — 3 000 haSavoie — 2 200 haJura — 2 000 haPriorat — 2 000 haValdeorras — 1 300 haSantorini — 1 100 haNaoussa — 700 haMadeira — 450 haColares — 20 haWachauLanguedocBordeauxSicilyVenetoPugliaSouthern RhôneRiojaTuscanyLoire ValleyEmilia-RomagnaKakhetiSouth-West FrancePiedmontDouroChampagneAbruzzoUtiel-RequenaBurgundyProvenceSardiniaFriuliRibera del DueroPenedèsPfalzCampaniaAlentejoMinhoRuedaDãoMarcheAlsaceBeaujolaisBurgenlandUmbriaCalabriaMoselDalmatiaJerezCyprusAtticaFrankenCorsicaTokajAlto AdigeValaisNorthern RhôneRías BaixasNaheSussex & KentRheingauBierzoNemeaSavoieJuraPrioratValdeorrasSantoriniNaoussaMadeiraColares
Blob size ≈ vineyard area · approximate locations · coastlines from Natural Earth

Bavarian monasteries cut the first dry-stone terraces of this Danube gorge in the early Middle Ages, and the landscape they began — a narrow vineyard threaded between Melk and Krems, its terrace walls still maintained by hand — was inscribed by UNESCO in 2000 as a river valley shaped by a thousand years of use.

When Austrian wine had to rebuild itself after the scandal of 1985, the Wachau led the way: the codex of its growers, Vinea Wachau, adopted in 1983, defines three ascending categories of dry wine — Steinfeder, Federspiel and Smaragd, the last named for the emerald lizard that suns itself on the terrace walls — and Grüner Veltliner and Riesling grown on gneiss became emblems of the country's quality rebirth.

The vineyard

Indicative share of plantings

The wines

Wachau Grüner Veltliner Dry white

Through time

Indicative presence index, 0–100Origins & Antiquity — 10The Monastic Middle Ages — 30Exploration & the Fortified Age — 25Classifications & the Golden Age — 25Phylloxera & the World Crises — 25The Modern & New World Era — 60Antiquity10500150017001875195060
Origins & Antiquity Antiquity The Monastic Middle Ages 500 Exploration & the Fortified Age 1500 Classifications & the Golden Age 1700 Phylloxera & the World Crises 1875 The Modern & New World Era 1950