Tips for a couple days in Austrian wine country?

I may be in Austria in March, and I’d love to take a couple days and go to wine country outside of Vienna. I love and know a bit about Austrian wine. I know nothing about Austrian wine country. Any tips? Where would be a good home base? Anywhere particularly picturesque (which I’d prefer over convenience)? I’m looking more for an interesting and charming couple days than I am targeting particular wineries (given that I’ll have my wife and possibly kids with me). Thanks in advance.

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well, there are about 650 hectares of wine country IN Vienna itself, so that is a lovely place to start. you can get to it on the trolley from downtown

the west side of Lake Neusiedl is home to marvellous wines and some really fine restaurants –
Blaufränkisch country, but also Chardonnays and Weissburgunders that are truly memorable

and the Austrian Wine Marketing Board has an excellent website

which i am in the process of translating and updating

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I strongly suggest Wachau. Its extremely beautiful, by the Danube with very small pretty villages. The biggest village to stay with a cute old town is Krems, especially the district of Stone on the Danube. Further along the Danube (north of the river) gets more picturesque but with smaller options. Its easy to get to from Vienna, just an hour drive. I suggest a small car to navigate the village streets.

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Are places open? I was in Durnstein the second week of October and they were basically shutting the place down as we walked out.

Krems is bigger, though.

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PM Gerhard P

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The Wachau is a nice way to spend a couple of relaxing days. Lots of good restaurants as well. If you get tired of wineries you can visit the Abbey at Melk.

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The Brundlmayer family runs an awesome inn and restaurant. Loved that place. Their wines aren’t bad either

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I was there in May and the region was spectacular in spring. Most village up the Danube were open, don’t know how it is in October or March. Krems should be open all time of the year.

I was in the Wachau for a day trip in mid-October. Some of the smaller retail/gift shops and a few restaurants were already closed for the season but it was also not crowded with tour buses so it was very nice. It was harvest season so we were told some of the smaller producers were closed too as its all hands on deck. We spent some time in Durnstein and Spitz. We also spent time visiting the Melk. While in Durnstein we did the short hike up to the Burgruine prison/fort/ruins where supposedly Lionheart was kept as a prisoner. Cannot help with lodging as this was a day trip out of Vienna. Personally I would have rather visited 1 more winery (We did 2) vs the Melk and spending a lot of time in Durnstein but if you have a few days you’ll be set with wine and family friendly activities.

If there is a vineyard you like I would call ahead - as some of them are not open to walk up visitors from what we were told. I also wanted to go to Burgenland but my wife is good for 1 day of wine tours, not multiples. Luckily we contacted a vineyard that was en route between Vienna and Budapest and they invited us in for a tasting. Because it was on our route it broke up the drive nicely and my wife did not mind the stop at all. From what I am told, many of these producers, if they do not have a tasting room will still welcome you to their homes/offices etc if you arrange in advance as they are very happy to share their love of wine.

I’ve been to several large old world regions like Rioja and Tuscany and some new world regions like Mendoza and Central Otago. Wachau for what its worth is not super developed for tourists, which is fine by me. But that is why I suggest either hiring a tour guide or making a few calls in advance. Most wine tours in the other regions give you the usual talk about what makes their region unique, rules for labeling wine, etc. After 3-4 tastings it gets “touristy”. I did no get that vibe in Wachau - just laid back, point to what you want and you can sample it and have a nice chat with family or those at the tasting room. Again my experience was 1 day there in October so take it for what it is worth. I easily could have spent another 1-2 days in those small towns so I think you’ll enjoy.

There are 3 main regions in Austria for great wines:

  • Wachau, Riesling + Grüner Veltliner
  • Burgenland, red and sweet wines
  • Steiermark/Styria: Great Sauvignon bl, Morillon/Chardonnay, Pinot blanc, Pinot gris, Traminer et al. …moreover a beautiful countryside … and the chance to get a tasting with yours truly if scedule fits …
    [cheers.gif]
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Gerhard - what about Kremstal/Kamptal?

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That´s very close - just straight ahead instead of turn left (from Krems). Very good wine there …

There are also fine producers in NÖ (Niederösterreich/Lower Austria), North, South and East of Vienna, but for “a couple of days” … it´s necessary to focus …

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Gonna take you up on that one day–we LOVE Steiermark.
Plus you and I can talk composition etc.

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You´re absolutely welcome …
[cheers.gif]

Enjoy:

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if one should ultimately choose to go the Wachau, despite there being other regions at the moment more appealing,

a good visit for dinner would be the old Florianihof in Wösendorf, now the Hofmeisterei Hirtzberger,
which shares its name with the estate Weinhofmeisterei of Mathias Hirtzberger, who is Franzi’s little brother
and the youngest son of Franz & Irmgard H.
– one is sure to find great wines & a good feed there

and i yield to the gentleman from Graz…

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It has been a few years but I had stayed at Hotel Schloss Durnstein several times and it was very nice, perfectly situated on the Danube. Just up the river is Weisenkirchen, a very quaint little village with lots of outside dining in good weather. Krems is a very nice walking town. The Egon Schiele museum is right at the town entrance. I have friends who have stayed at the Loisium Langenlois wine spa. Seems a bit modern for my tastes but is suppose to be really nice.

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Just saw this on Reddit today

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^
Anne is one of the very best.

and just today honoured with the Wachau’s Steinfeder prize, it turns out…

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I did a small write-up when I visited Styria a while back if any help…I was working in Graz for a week as we have a site there.

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Your pictures and the write-up capture the region really very well.
flirtysmile