Vienna

Viticulture in Vienna is as old as Vienna itself - the Celtic settlement of Vedunia, and later the Roman garrison of Vindobona both cultivated grapes. The earliest named vineyards were documented in 1132, and by the late middle ages, all city districts had their own vineyards. Viennese Heurigen culture, which so dominates Viennese wine to this day, was made possible by Emporor Josef II, who in 1784 passed a law allowing wine growers to sell their wine alongside home-made food.  Today, Vienna is the only European capital city to have important vineyards within its city limits. A wide range of wines is grown here, ranging from the simple, designed to be drunk in quantity at the Heurige, or wine bars, through to top quality wines. Red and white wines are made, but Grüner Veltliner dominates. We offer wines from the highly respected grower Rainer Christ, whose main vineyards lie on the gently sloping south-facing Bisamberg Hill, on the north-eastern boundary of Vienna. The Bisamberg is apparently the most easterly “Alp” so Christ’s wines are technically alpine wines. The Christs have been winemakers for 400 years, and today the property is a remarkable blend of old and new, with modern cellars and cutting-edge architecture.