Domäne Wachau
The Domäne Wachau is situated in the heart of the Wachau Valley, one of Europe’s oldest cultural landscapes. The Wachau is a gorge of only 33 km in length. Steep slopes terraced with dry stone walls, fortressed mountains, vineyards, orchards, rare flora and fauna as well as a rich cultural tradition make this a unique area in all of Europe. For this reason, the Wachau has also been named a World Cultural Heritage by UNESCO.
Wine has been cultivated in the Wachau for centuries. Primary rock soil, an exceptional climate and terraces overlooking the Danube River have great influence on the tremendous quality of the Wachau wines.
The preservation of this unique cultural landscape is an integral part of the Domäne Wachau mission as is making a visit to our headquarters in the historic baroque Cellar Castle a memorable highlight for guests of the Wachau.
Soil and Geology
Despite covering a fairly small area, the soils of the Wachau are quite diversified. The Danube River gorged its way through hard, crystalline primary rock to form the unique Wachau landscape. The Bohemian Massif, the oldest geological rock formation in Austria, is the remaining foundation of a prehistoric mountain range. Migmatitic granite gneiss and paragneiss were once intrusive igneous rock and sediments that altered under the earth’s crust due to pressure and heat to form the present subsoil of the Wachau. Gneiss is rich in quartz and also contains minerals like feldspar and mica. Wines from these soils are characterized by mineral precision and elegant fruit.
Terraces
The Domäne Wachau "Terrassen” wines are sourced from the best grapes grown on the steep terraces of the Wachau. These high quality wines are vinified with conscientious focus on terroir and express the mineral character derived from the primary rock soils of the Wachau.
This exemplary Smaragd exhibits finesse and complexity and has a mineral structure. This extraordinary wine develops slowly; decanting is recommended.
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