Austrian Wine

the appetizer:

In addition to native regional traditions like Viennese cuisine, Austrian food has been influenced by Hungarian, Czech, Jewish, Italian and Bavarian cuisines. Austria has one of the most transcultural cuisines in Europe.

Linz Bouquet

Austria

Wine

From Linz to Vienna and beyond, the Danube (or Blue) River maintains a wonderful sunny climate that makes the Wachau Valley and other nearby regions one of the best places to grow grapes.

After a 1985 "glucose" scandal that saw unscrupulous winemakers using anti-freeze on their grapes, Austrian winemaking has returned to its organic origins, producing some of the best wines in Europe.

The dominant white wine grape is the green Veltliner, which yields a fruity, tart wine prized by locals. Though Chardonnay, Muller-Thurgau, Muscat-Ottonel, Neuberger, Weissburgunder and Welschriesling are popular also, Austrian Riesling is the premier white grape of the region, yielding some of the finest Riesling wines in the world.

The four primary wine growing regions and their predominant grapes include:

Burgenland: Blaufrankisch; Muller-Thurgau; Spatburgunder; Saint-Laurent; Zweigelt
Niederosterreich: Grune Veltliner; Riesling
Steiermark: Blauer Wildbach; Chardonnay; Sauvignon blanc; Weissburgunder
Vienna: Grune Veltliner; Heuriger; Rheinriesling; Weissburgunder