Austria by percentage has the most organic wine production - mostly white wines (60% or more and mostly dry wines) - of any country within the EU.
- Main white grapes:
- Grüner Veltliner
- Riesling
- Main red grapes:
- Zweigelt
- Blaufränkisch
- St.-Laurent
Austria used to mimic Germany’s hierarchy by rating wines in terms of ripeness level of the grapes (kabinett - TBA) however they currently ripen all of their grapes to the same level and use them to typically make dry wines. That being said they do produce a group of sweet wines that are rated with ripeness designations (Ripeness levels are measured using the Klosterneuburger Mostwage Scale, or KMW). Those are as follows:
- Beerenauslese (BA): made from over-ripe or botrytis affected grapes
- Eiswein: made from well ripened grapes that have frozen on the vines
- Ausbruch: made from botrytis affected or naturally raisined grapes
- Trockenbeerenauslese (TBA): highly dried botrytis affected grapes
- These wines make up a small percentage of top level wine production and typically come from the Burgenland region.
- Landwein (PGI): regional wines
- Qualitätswein (PDO)
- Uses the DAC (Districtus Austriae Controllatus) system to regulate grape varieties used and maintain quality standards. This system is similar to France’s AOC system in that terroir is prioritized.
- Prädikatswein (PDO)
- Similar to the Prädikatswein of Germany, quality standards for these wines are based on ripeness levels of the grapes at the time of harvest.
- The Wachau region has its own classification system for dry wines which must be indicated on labels
- Steinfeder: 11.5 percent max Alcohol by Volume (ABV)
- Federspiel: 11.5 percent - 12.5 percent ABV
- Smaragd: 12.5 percent min ABV
Austria’s DAC system is meant to mimic the European GI / appellation system. There are 9 DAC regions which list the appellation name and “DAC” on the label rather than the variety:
- Niederösterreich, Vienna (Wien), Burgenland, Styria (Steiermark), Oberösterreich, Kärnten, Tirol, Vorarlberg
- Main white grapes:
- Grüner Veltliner
- Riesling
- Is the most important region here and is broken up into 8 districts
- Of the 8, Wachau, Kremstal DAC, and Kamptal DAC are the most important
- Best known for its sweet wines called Ausbruch which are botrytis affected, or partially botrytis affected, wines. These wines are made using the same methods as its neighbor Hungary uses to make their famous sweet wine Takaji Aszú
- Is the second smallest of Austria’s regions
- Best known for their Sauvignon Blancs
