Ortsweingebiete Weststeiermark

LANDSCAPE
The landscape embraces winegrowing on gentle hills as well as on extremely steep slopes. The vineyards are situated on the foothills of the Reinischkogel, some vines even at 650 metres above sea level. The old fortress Burg Ligist provides the region with its principal tourist attraction.

AREA UNDER VINES
50 hectares

PRIMARY VARIETIES
Sauvignon Blanc & Blauer Wildbacher (vinified as Schilcher)

SOILS
Predominantly limestone-free stony brown earth, originating from crystalline plate gneiss & schists.

STYLE
Wines with complex fruit and a vibrant minerality are produced on the sparse gneiss and slate soils and under the influence of the cold falling winds of the Koralpe Range.

LANDSCAPE
The well-known Stainz Castle is situated on the southern foothills of the Rosenkogel and Reinischkogel. Here the vines grow on steep slopes at up to 600 metres above sea level.

AREA UNDER VINES
196 hectares

PRIMARY VARIETIES
Sauvignon Blanc & Blauer Wildbacher (vinified as Schilcher)

SOILS
Sandy & limestone-free soils, formed on crystalline schists & gneisses.

STYLE
Wines with complex fruit and a vibrant minerality are produced on the sparse gneiss and slate soils, under the influence of the cold downdrafts of the Koralpe Range.

LANDSCAPE
The vineyards are situated on foothills of the Koralpe Range. In Deutschlandsberg, the vines are also growing in the region’s highest-situated vineyards (380–600 metres above sea level). The mighty, medieval – and in the early modern era structurally-expanded – Deutschlandsberg Castle sits amidst the vineyards, and the nearby forest offers a wild & romantic destination for excursions.

AREA UNDER VINES
124 hectares

PRIMARY VARIETIES
Sauvignon Blanc & Blauer Wildbacher (vinified as Schilcher)

SOILS
Predominantly gneiss, formed from crystalline plate gneiss (northern area); loamy, sandy & gravel soils (southern area).

STYLE
The gneiss soils in the northern area bring forth wines with a pronounced primary aromatic arc. The Schilcher tend to be lighter here. On the other hand, the sandy & gravelly soils in the southern part of Deutschlandsberg inspire the secondary aromas in the wines to unfold more perceptibly: riper to spicier styles of wine with enhanced notes of juicy strawberries and wild strawberries. The acidity is usually not so racy as it can be in wines from crystalline soils. The wines are usually deeper in colour, fuller in body and evince more pronounced tannins.

LANDSCAPE
Topography is hilly to mountainous. The vineyards grow on the slopes of the foothills of the eastern Alpine Koralpe Range. Coming from Graz, the well-known Schilcher Wine Trail and viticulture itself find their geologic/climatic terminus here.

AREA UNDER VINES
155 hectares

PRIMARY VARIETIES
Sauvignon Blanc & Blauer Wildbacher (vinified as Schilcher)

SOILS
Predominantly loamy soils on sand & gravel, as well as limestone-free soils of crystalline schists & gneisses.

STYLE
These predominantly sandy soils usually produce riper, spicier wines with prominent notes of strawberries & wild strawberries. The acidity is usually not so perceptibly racy as it can be in wines from crystalline soils. The wines are usually deeper in colour, fuller in body and have more tannins. The gneiss soils to the northwest are more likely to produce wines with pronounced primary aromas and brighter colour.