Travel from Vienna to the Wachau Valley and combine top wines with music and food at one of the best vineyards in the world!

Domäne Wachau, a top Austrian winery located in the heart of the Wachau Valley, one of the most beautiful and best places to visit in Austria, hosts the annual Wachau Music and Wine Festival each Summer.

We were lucky enough to attend this festival in June this year, taking with us a group of Americans as part of a wine tour of Lower Austria and Burgenland. It was a wonderful experience and offered such a great opportunity to sample wines from some 25 or so top Wachau wineries which produce some of the best Austrian wines.

We’re planning a Wachau wine tour next year, around the Music and Wine Festival - once the date is available we will share details - but in the meantime, here is a flavour of what to expect!

Or perhaps contact us and let us help you plan your own wine travel there!

Domäne Wachau - a winery and cooperative

Domäne Wachau is one of Austria’s leading wine estates - and it is also arguably the world’s top cooperatives for white wines. With a history dating back to the 1930s, Domäne Wachau has become one of the finest examples of a successful cooperative, producing top quality wines.

Domäne Wachau is led today by Managing Director Roman Horvath MW and Cellar Master and winemaker Heinz Frischengruber, who work with their 200 vignerons - who cultivate the individual plots in the prized Wachau vineyards. Each vigneron looks after their own plot, cultivating (mainly by hand) and importantly repairing the distinctive stone walls of the Wachau vineyards. Each plot is less than 2 hectares on average - in total, representing nearly one third of the area under vine in the Wachau wine region.

Today, Domäne Wachau produces award-winning wines and some 160 hectares of the total area is now certified organic,  making Domäne Wachau Austria's leading wine estate for organically cultivated vines.  

Domäne Wachau single vineyard wines

Today Domäne Wachau wine is sold all around the world and especially its single vineyard wines, from world-famous vineyards such as Achleiten, Loibenberg, and Kellerberg are in high demand for their distinctive, pure style and unique depth and freshness. Domäne Wachau Riesling and Domäne Wachau Grüner Veltliner wines are respected as top quality Austrian wines and  Domäne Wachau is the only estate in the entire Wachau wine region to nurture parcels in every well-known single vineyard of the Wachau. 

Domäne Wachau - one of the ‘World’s best Vineyards’ to visit

Domäne Wachau was the only Austrian wine estate to earn a spot in the top 50 of the ‘World’s Best Vineyards Awards 2023’. Ranked in 14th position, alongside some of the world’s top estates, Domäne Wachau was rated by a panel of judges including  journalists, wine critics and tourism experts, as a top wine estate to visit.

For the visiting wine tourist, there is lots to enjoy and experience. The quality of the wines is undoubtedly a major part of the experience, but there’s more to enjoy besides:

The heart of Domäne Wachau is the extensive cellar beneath the historic ‘Kellerschlössel’ building which dates back to 1714/15. A beautiful Baroque ‘Palace’ the ‘Kellerschlössel’ is iconic in the Wachau region and numerous events are held here each year.

You can visit the famous underground cellars as part of an estate tour and wine tasting (from April-October) - see the wooden barrels, the steel tanks and the concrete, granite, clay and even marble tanks and learn what makes Domäne Wachau and its wines so unique. 

You can also enjoy a variety of other wine experiences at Domäne Wachau including hiking or a picnic in the vineyards, or a wine tasting on a yacht or ship, as you cruise down the River Danube and through the heart of the Wachau vineyards, past such lovely Wachau villages as Dürnstein and Weissenkirchen. 

For a few days only over the Summer you can also enjoy some wonderful, traditional dishes and wines of course at the Kellerschlossel-Heuriger, sitting in the beautiful garden overlooking the famous Kellerberg vineyard.
There is also a fabulous shop - or vinothek - at Domäne Wachau, where you can browse and purchase regional gifts as well as wines of course!

The Annual Wachau Music and Wine Festival

Several events are held at Domäne Wachau each year but none more popular than the annual Wachau Music and wine Festival, held in the grounds in front of the beautiful, historic Kellerschlössel building.

The event is held on a Saturday each Summer - in 2024 it was held on June 15th - the 2025 date has not been released yet. 

If you are lucky enough to get a ticket you can spend the day and evening enjoying wines from the top Wachau wineries, representing the various Wachau villages. 

The format is very simple - collect your tasting glass (and a bottle of water!) and wander round the different tables, sampling wines from the different wine producers. 

These were the wine producers represented at the 2024 event:

Organic winery Schmidl | Domain Roland Chan | Domain Wachau | Trench workshop | Alzinger Winery | Bergkirchner Winery | Christoph Donabaum Winery | Eder Winery | Franz-Josef Gritsch winery | Frischengruber Winery | Gottfried Pöchlinger winery | Hiedler Winery | Hirtzberger Winery | Hofstätter Winery | Högl Winery | Hutter Winery | Winery Jäger | Jamek Winery | Johann Donabaum Winery | Josef Fischer Winery | Kendl Winery | Knoll Winery | Machherndl Winery | Markus Mayer Winery | Mörtinger Winery | Nikolaihof Winery | Prager Winery | Rehrl-Fischer winery | Rudi Pichler Winery | Winery PAX | Winery Schloss Dürnstein | Schmelz Winery | Schneeweis Winery | Schneeweiß Winery | Simon Gattinger Winery | Winery Von Der Vogelwaide | Winery 378 Project Höll | Weinhofmeisterei Mathias Hirtzberger

In addition to sampling some of the best Wachau wines, we got to try some local foods from the various food stands, wander around the grounds and to simply relax and enjoy the music, the company and the incredible setting! A perfect day!

Additional useful information

Getting to the Wachau wine region

You can easily visit the Wachau wine region and Domäne Wachau from Vienna. If you hire a car, the journey time is about 1.5 hours, or alternatively we can help you to arrange a taxi. There is also a good train service from Vienna to the town of Krems in the Wachau, just 1–15 minutes away from Dürnstein and Domäne Wachau.

Accommodation and dining in the Wachau

Dürnstein is the nearest village to Domäne Wachau and there are some excellent accommodation and dining options here as well as in the neighbouring villages - see here for information.

Exploring the Wachau wine region

If you have time to explore the wine villages and visit some different wineries, see here for some ideas and information.

Interested in a wine tour exploring the Wachau wine region?

Let us help you plan a trip to the beautiful Wachau! Start here by sharing some information about you and your perfect wine tour with us!

Conclusion - our personal highlights

We had the best time at the Domäne Wachau Music and Wine Festival! It was fun, relaxing and incredibly great value for money when you consider that you get to taste so many different top Wachau wines, whilst enjoying the location and setting of the unique Domäne Wachau, such an icon in the world of Austrian wine.

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