Wagram, Austria

When people think about Lower Austria, it is often a story of age-old family dynasties who have worked the same land, the same vineyards, and the same cellar for decades.

For Clemens and Lukas Strobl the story seems different from the start. Their family history in wine only starts in 2008 when Clemens commits to a mere hectare of vines in the underrated Wagram region. He was fascinated by the unique texture of the wines of the area and believed in the potential of single-vineyard Grüner Veltliner and Riesling. Both varieties are rooted in the dense aeolian sediments formed by the wind-blown silt over thousands of years. Each year the family (who just finished works on their beautiful new estate in the small village of Kirchberg) produces a small amount of single-vineyard wines coming from Crus like 'Rosenberg' and 'Pfaffenberg' for Riesling and 'Schreckenberg' and 'Losling' for Grüner Veltiner. Their delicious estate blend 'Donauschotter' represents a blend of all their vineyards each year and to us speaks perfectly of the Wagram's signature texture.

Despite their relative youth as a producer, the Strobl family has shown a tremendous evolution, identifying early on the importance of organic farming as a base for quality in their wines. With Lukas slowly taking over the responsibility of the vineyards and the cellar (after having worked with the likes of Martin Gojer of Pranzegg and Clemens Busch) they constantly look at increasing biodiversity within their vineyards while keeping their impact in the cellar to a minimum.