📍 Styria

Styria (Steiermark) is a federal state in south-eastern Austria bordering Slovenia, with its capital in Graz, and the wine appellation of the same name. In 2020 it had 4,739.65 ha of vineyards – about 10 % of Austria's. The leading varieties are Sauvignon Blanc and Welschriesling, and Blauer Wildbacher is made into the rosé Schilcher.

The climate is partly shaped by an Illyrian, Adriatic influence, with big temperature differences between day and night. Vulkanland Steiermark lies on volcanic and basalt soils, South Styria on the southern edge of the Graz basin, among slates, sands, marls and limestones, and West Styria on gneiss and slate, with noticeably more rain.

The name has been protected in the EU since 19.02.1999. Since the 2018 vintage there have been three DACs: Südsteiermark (2,279 ha), Vulkanland Steiermark (1,815 ha) and Weststeiermark (646 ha). Each has three tiers – Gebietswein, Ortswein and Riedenwein – with hand harvesting and a compulsory vintage. In 2020 Sauvignon Blanc covered 763 ha (16.1 %), Welschriesling 741 ha (15.7 %), Weißburgunder 13.1 %, Muskateller 8.5 % and Chardonnay, known here as Morillon, 7.5 %.

Under Austrian law, Schilcher is only a rosé from Blauer Wildbacher grown and processed in Styria. 99.6 % of all Austrian Wildbacher grows here, and Schilcher's main home is West Styria, where the DAC wine is called “Schilcher Klassik”. The state's regional wine is sold as Steirerland.

Why it matters to you. A DAC wine will not say just “Steiermark”: look for the name of the zone, commune or site. “Morillon” on the label is Chardonnay. A rosé “Schilcher” cannot come from another variety or from outside Styria.