Südsteiermark - Austrian Tuscany

Called the "Austrian Tuscany" for its rolling green hills, but producing world-class Sauvignon Blanc and aromatic whites. Top producers like Tement, Gross, and Sattlerhof create wines rivaling the best of Sancerre. The landscape alone is worth the journey.

What to do there

5 things to do

1. 1 Climb the Tower That Sees Three Countries Adventure · Free

   From the Wasserturm Weinleiten (20-minute walk from Gamlitz village or drive up vineyard road signposted 'Weinleiten'), climb 120 steps up this 27-meter water tower for completely free 360-degree views. At 23 meters high, you can see deep into Slovenia and Croatia on clear days. Below you: the patchwork quilt of vine terraces that earned this place the nickname 'Austrian Tuscany.' The Klapotetz windmills — wooden bird-scarers clapping in these vineyards since the Enlightenment — dot the slopes. Face south toward Slovenia and find the distinct Karmeliter Chapel plateau ridge line where Tement's most prized Zieregg plots sit. This is your orientation before the wine.

   Backup: If the tower is closed for ice/snow conditions, drive the Südsteirische Weinstraße road north toward Ehrenhausen — the road itself offers rolling vineyard panoramas from every bend.

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2. 2 Find the Vineyard That Won the World in 1991 Wine · Price: moderate

   In 1976, Manfred Tement was 16 when his father died suddenly, inheriting a tiny winery nobody had heard of. Through the 1980s he quietly bought every parcel on the steep Zieregg slope. In 1991, German magazine Der Feinschmecker named his Zieregg Sauvignon Blanc the 'world's best,' putting this anonymous hillside in global wine conversation forever. The Zieregg's opok soil — compressed calcareous clay-marl — forces roots down through rock millions of years old. At Weingut Tement (Zieregg 13, Berghausen), book a tasting appointment via tement.at (required, €15/person). Ask specifically to taste single-vineyard Zieregg wines alongside entry-level Südsteiermark DAC — the contrast reveals exactly what this slope does to the same grape. Ask about the Kapelle plot near the chapel, their final acquisition.

   Backup: If Tement is fully booked, Weingut Gross in nearby Ratsch an der Weinstraße offers cellar tours by appointment (€20/person, 8-wine tasting, +43 3453 2527 or weingut@gross.at). Same opok soils, equally serious Sauvignon Blanc.

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3. 3 Decode the Clacking Sound in the Vineyard History · Free

   Pull over when you hear the rhythmic wooden clapping getting louder with wind, then fading — that's a Klapotetz. Tall wooden poles with windmill mechanisms where wooden hammers lift and drop against boards with different timing, creating almost musical sound. For centuries, Styrian winemakers erected these on Saint James's Day (July 25) and removed them Saint Martin's Day (November 11) — the exact window when starlings gorge on ripe Sauvignon Blanc. Drive the Klapotetzstraße from Arnfels toward Eichberg-Trautenburg (follow signs from Leutschach) and stop anywhere the clapping is loudest. In quiet early morning they're silent, then wind gusts make every Klapotetz on every slope erupt at once.

   Backup: Even without the Klapotetzstraße, any drive on the main wine road between Gamlitz and Leutschach reveals multiple examples. They're on every hillside.

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4. 4 Order Something You Cannot Get Anywhere Else in the World Wine · Price: low

   In 1784, Emperor Joseph II issued a decree that any winemaker could sell their own wine and cold food from home without license — creating the Buschenschank system that's still law. At Buschenschank Tinnauer (vineyard road above Gamlitz, look for green juniper branch above door), they can ONLY serve their own wine. The Brettljause (€27 per person, order for two minimum) arrives on wooden boards: smoked meats, cured bacon, fresh horseradish, liver pâté, Käferbohnen (purple-black runner beans that look like beetles), cheese, pumpkin seed oil so dark green it's nearly black, and house-baked bread. That Styrian PDO pumpkin seed oil — nutty, bitter, extraordinary — gets drizzled over everything. Order house Sauvignon Blanc and eat on the terrace overlooking Gamlitzer vineyards. This layer-3 local experience cannot be replicated anywhere else in the world.

   Backup: If Tinnauer is closed, any Buschenschank with juniper branch above the door follows identical laws — same rules, same cold food, same own wine. There are 200+ in the region.

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5. 5 Stand Inside the Tomb That Took 80 Years to Finish History · Free · Optional

   In 1609, General Ruprecht von Eggenberg — the man who stopped Ottoman advance into Austria — began building his own mausoleum while still alive and flush with military glory. He died in 1611 with the building barely begun. His descendants kept building for 80 years until completion in 1691. Then they hired Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach (who later designed Schönbrunn Palace) to finish the interior in the early 1700s. At Ehrenhausen (12km from Gamlitz), drive into town and follow signs uphill toward the castle. The mausoleum sits on the slope below, impossible to miss. Walk up Schloßweg path (10 minutes) — exterior grounds are open free. The view from the terrace back over the wine road valley is itself worth the climb.

   Backup: The Schloss Ehrenhausen (castle) itself, also visible on the hill, dates from the 12th century and is privately owned — admire the exterior from below. The view from the castle hill over the first stretch of the wine road toward Gamlitz is one of the defining images of Südsteiermark.

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Insider tips

• The Zieregg vineyard Sauvignon Blanc from Tement is world-class

• Book lunch at Sattlerhof for the complete Styrian experience

• The view from the terrace into Slovenia is spectacular