Grape Varieties

Anyone tasting a Grüner Veltliner from the Wachau for the first time is often surprised by a scent more associated with the spice rack than the vineyard: white pepper. The compound responsible is called rotundone. It's also found in real pepper, and no other grape variety produces it so reliably or in such quantity. Roughly half of all vineyards in the Wachau are planted with this one variety. It's the backbone of the region.

The second pillar is Riesling. It covers just under a fifth of the area, considerably less than Veltliner, but it thrives on the steepest, most barren sites. Vineyards like Achleiten in Weißenkirchen, Singerriedel in Spitz, or Klaus near Unterloiben are considered its finest addresses, all on heavily weathered bedrock. There it ripens slowly, holding onto its acidity while developing notes of ripe peach over the years, sometimes with a smoky, flinty edge. Only these two varieties, Grüner Veltliner and Riesling, are permitted under the strictest DAC tier to carry the name of a single vineyard on the label.

A third variety tells the Wachau's quirkiest story. Around 1850, two winemakers near Arnsdorf are said to have fished a bundle of vine shoots out of the Danube and planted it out of curiosity. What grew turned out to be a variety that didn't exist anywhere before. Genetic analysis later confirmed it as a natural cross between Roter Veltliner and Sylvaner. The new variety was named Neuburger, after the nearby village. It yields mild, nutty wines with low acidity — the calm counterpart to sharp-edged Riesling.

For Ortswein bearing the name of a village, six other varieties are permitted alongside Veltliner, Riesling and Neuburger: Weißburgunder, Grauburgunder, Chardonnay, Muskateller, Sauvignon Blanc and Traminer. Together they show just how strongly the Wachau leans toward white wine. Red wine accounts for a mere six percent of the vineyard area, a marginal presence next to so much white. It's mostly Blauer Zweigelt, with a little Pinot Noir and Sankt Laurent behind it.