Reviving the Danube terraces Roter Veltliner

On the north side of the Danube river around the ancient city of Krems, there is an area perfectly suited for wine production, with splendid terraces that extend over a radius of 30 km and cover five wine regions: Wagram, Traisental, Wachau, Kremstal, and Kamptal.

This wide valley formed by the Danube in the last ice age has a microclimate ideal for wine production. The latest Slow Food Presidium in Austria is one such wine: the Roter Veltliner, the production of which started to decrease significantly in the 1950s, with only haven remaining: the terraces of Wagram. The industrialization of viticulture, which involves the use of tractors and synthetic chemicals to maximize yields and flattens wines, has caused the almost total disappearance of the Roter Veltliner vines. By the 1980s, these wines had practically disappeared from the market.