2023 Wachau and Lower Austria: Mercurial Weather Gods Smiled in the End

BY ANNE KREBIEHL MW | JULY 18, 2024

In 2023, all the signs pointed to a long growing season with a late harvest, but rains after a hot summer with record temperatures sped everything up. These August rains provided some relief from dry stress but also turned into devastating hailstorms in places. Coolish and sunny weather allowed hail-damaged grapes to dry, preventing what could have been a complete rot-fest. Benevolence lasted, and gloriously sunny, settled harvest weather, described as “traumhaft,” or dreamlike, allowed a wide spectrum of stylistic expression – and really ripe grapes. Notwithstanding some hail damage, what winemakers mentioned most was the stunning beauty of the fruit at harvest. Few had seen such perfection. This resulted in exquisitely expressive wines with crunch and fruit in equal measure.

Grüner Veltliner vines on the alluvial flatlands close to the Danube in the Wachau.

2023 – A Record Year

Austria’s Climate Status Report (Climate Change Centre Austria in collaboration with BOKU Vienna and Geosphere Austria, Vienna 2024) notes that 2023, together with 2018, was the hottest average year since records began in 1768, noting that in “lower lying areas and the east of the country, it largely was the hottest year.” Readers must note that “lower lying” in this Alpine country does refer to the wine regions. Horvath at Domäne Wachau made an interesting observation: “In terms of climate change, 2023 was a record year,” he said but noted that in comparison to 20 years ago in 2003, the first unprecedently hot vintage of this century, growers are now much better equipped to deal with the situation. Work has gone into building water retention in the soil with “healthier, more distributed root systems,” and both soil and canopy management are now “many steps ahead of where we were then.” Constant adaptation and constant calibration in the vineyard are key.

The other chief observation of the Climate Status Report is the increased incidence of extreme weather events – like heavy downpours and hail. This continues apace. On the evening of 3 June 2024, I was almost caught in a mudslide in the village of Senftenberg in Kremstal; so heavy and extreme was the sudden downpour on already sodden soils. Several villages sounded sirens, calling the local volunteer fire brigades to take action and pump out flooded cellars. Life is definitely not getting easier for farmers.

The skies may have been moody, but Christina Wess and husband David Juen-Wess were full of smiles during our outdoor tasting in the Krems vineyards.

The Lay of the Land

This report covers the regions of Wachau, Kremstal, Kamptal, Traisental, Wagram and Weinviertel, all part of Lower Austria, as well as the wines of Vienna. The other two regions of Lower Austria, i.e., Carnuntum and Thermenregion, will be covered later in the year alongside Burgenland, as red wines dominate. Wachau (1,296ha), Kremstal (2,267ha) and Kamptal (3,583ha) are three compact regions west of Vienna. The Wachau is the westernmost of the Lower Austria regions, stretching along both banks of the Danube from Mautern, just over an hour west of Vienna, to the Spitzer Graben in the west. There is a marked temperature difference along the region, with the vineyards tucked away in the Spitzer Graben, a lateral valley that is almost marginal, with sites gradually getting warmer towards Mautern. Moving east towards Vienna, Kremstal borders the Wachau and runs along the river Krems, a tributary to the Danube. Again, there is a temperature difference between the narrow, mountainous Krems Valley at Senftenberg and the far more open and warmer vineyards that face the Danube at Krems and Stein and on the right bank of the Danube. Kamptal runs along the river Kamp and borders Kremstal to the west and Weinviertel to the north and east. Kamptal vineyards do not touch the Danube at all but boast many south-facing slopes surrounding the town of Langenlois. Traisental (855ha) extends along the river Traisen south of the Danube but is cooler; Wagram (2,450ha) is a vast bank of loess between these regions and Vienna. The Weinviertel (13,841ha) is a large region stretching north and east of Vienna to the borders of the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Despite the significant hectarage, Weinvertel vineyards are dispersed across a vast area, and many parts of the region have no vineyards at all. Vienna (582ha) is counted separately and is not only Europe’s but the world’s only state capital with a sizeable and centuries-old wine industry within its city limits.