Discovering South Styria Austria - visit to Hannes Sabathi
Hannes Sabathi is a leading light in the region of South Styria, or Südsteiermark, in Southern Austria, known especially for his superb Sauvignon Blanc wines
Weingut Hannes Sabathi in South Styria, Austria - Source: Winekeller
Years ago when we used to import wine to sell to premium UK restaurants, we imported top-class Austrian Sauvignon Blanc wines from Weingut Hannes Sabathi in Styria - or Südsteiermark, Southern Austria. At that time these wines were relatively unknown outside of Austria but today Hannes Sabathi is regarded as one of the leading winemakers in the Styria wine region and indeed in Austria.
We decided to spend some time in the southern part of Styria, where most of the respected Styrian wine producers are located, to explore the beautiful ‘South Styria Wine Road’ and of course our first stop was Weingut Hannes Sabathi!
We also opted to stay in a hotel close to his winery - Landgut am Pössnitzberg - which features his wines in its restaurant.
Read on to learn about Hannes Sabathi and our stay in the beautiful region of South Styria.
The stunning vineyards and landscapes of South Styria - Source: Winekeller
Watch the video here:
An introduction to South Styria in Austria
The beautiful Austrian wine region of Styria - or Steiermark - is known for its superb Austrian Sauvignon Blanc wines and no more so than in the most southern of the three Styria wine regions - South Styria.
Austrian Sauvignon Blanc
Sauvignon Blanc is the leading grape variety here, representing over a quarter of the total vines planted.
Today, South Styria produces world-class Sauvignon wines, ranging from fresh, fragrant wines to superior, extremely elegant wines. The range of wines reflects the wide range of soils and terroirs in South Styria, which includes sand, slate, marl and limestone. Additionally, the milder, quite humid Mediterranean climate with cooler nights perfectly suits the Sauvignon Blanc grape variety.
After Sauvignon Blanc, the next most popular grape variety is Welschriesling, then Gelber Muskateller, Pinot Blanc and Chardonnay (known as Morillon here). Some 91% of vines are white wine grapes.
South Styria - Südsteiermark wine locations
South Styria map - Source: Austrian Wine
South Styria wine regions
As defined by the 2018 Südsteiermark DAC, there are five different wine locations in South Styria, including: Kitzeck-Sausal, Eichberg, Leutschach, Gamlitz and Ehrenhausen.
South Styria is characterised by its hilly ‘Tuscan’ landscapes and extremely steep vineyard slopes, making producing wine here quite a challenging business! The steepest and highest vineyards are located in the Kitzeck-Sausal region, where gradients can reach 100% common and the highest vineyards are located up to 600 metres above sea level.
In South Styria and indeed all three Styrian wine regions, specific rules apply for the production of ‘regional wines’ (Gebietsweine), ‘village wines’ (Ortsweine) and ‘single vineyard wines’ (Riedenweine). Top vineyards are located in each of the five regions.
The South Styrian wine road
The southern part of the Styrian wine region, on the border with Slovenia, is simply breathtaking.
Enjoying exploring the beautiful South Styrian wine road - on the well known ‘Herzerlbank’ (heart bench)
The landscapes, views and panoramas are stunning and there is no better way to explore and experience this wonderful region than following the South Styrian wine road - or the ‘Südsteierische Weinstrasse’!
In Styria there are 8 different wine roads and 3 of these are in South Styria - the South Styrian Wine Trail, the Schilcher Wine Trail and the Sausal Wine Trail.
The South Styrian wine road is the most well-known and it runs for 25kms through beautiful rolling hills, charming villages and steep vineyards, between the small towns of Ehrenhausen an der Weinstrasse and Leutschach an der Weinstrasse, via Gamlitz.
By driving or cycling the wine route you can experience the best of the Styria wine region - visiting wineries, stopping at a local Buschenschank or wine tavern (of which there are more than 100 on the wine road) and enjoy a traditional ‘Brettljause’ (cold plated snack) and a refreshing, fruity glass of wine. There are lots of panoramic viewing points where you can rest and savour the spectacular vistas and you’re never far away from the iconic “Klapotetz” (a traditional windmill), reflecting the traditional way of life here in this most unspoiled and natural environment.
Stop and take time to enjoy some of the excellent walking and hiking trails on the South Styrian wine road - especially if you’re driving, you need to make time to get your walking shoes on and explore! There are lots of different paths, all well marked and there to be enjoyed and to show you the best of the region. Note that the trails take you through the vineyards, which can in places be quite steep!
Weingut Hannes Sabathi
Hannes Sabathi - Source: Winekeller
One of a new generation of dynamic and innovative winemakers, Hannes Sabathi is a member of the Steierische Terroir & Klassikweingüter (STK) and over recent years he has pursued his life’s passion to produce the best wines possible, working alongside Nature and harnessing his deep knowledge of the soils, his considerable experience and his proven instinct in the vineyard and the cellar.
Weingut Hannes Sabathi is located on the ‘Jägerberg’ just outside the town of Gamlitz, on the South Styria wine road, one of the largest wine-producing communities in Styria - a land of steep slopes, rolling, green hills and broad valleys, housing some of the region’s top vineyards.
Hannes Sabathi farms about 70 hectares of vineyards across various different plots in the South Styria regions of Gamlitz and Leutschach - as well as one near Graz. Each of the 8 or 9 vineyard plots is unique, enabling the production of some 35 different wines, all expressing the different soils and terroirs. Organic processes are followed in the vineyard and the cellar.
The soils in the Gamlitz region contain a lot of gravel and sand and in the Leutschach region there is more chalk and limestone, which gives the wines a fresh and slightly salty flavour.
Hannes Sabathi is known for his superb Sauvignon Blanc wines (over 50% of the vineyards are planted with Sauvignon) and very fresh wines with great acidity and fruit and excellent ageing potential (up to 20 years for the single vineyard wines). The single vineyard wines age for a minimum of 1.5 years in French oak, whilst the other wines are matured mainly in stainless steel tanks.
The impressive new winery was built in 2022 and Hannes Sabathi now exports its wines to 13 different countries.
Hannes Sabathi wine tastings
Groups can arrange a cellar tour and wine tasting at the winery but we would also recommend tasting the range of Hannes Sabathi wines a few miles away near Leutschach at the hotel Landgut am Pössnitzberg. Hannes started to rent 30 hectares of vineyards in this area around the hotel in 2021 and partners with the hotel who feature his wines in the Kreuzwirt restaurant. You can arrange tastings here and of course enjoy the range of wines with lunch or dinner (which we can highly recommend - read on..!)
Hannes Sabathi wines - what a tasting!
We enjoyed an amazing tour of the impressive winery, followed by a very comprehensive tasting from across the entire range of wines. This included the top of the range Hannes Sabathi Sauvignon Blanc single vineyard wines from the Kranachberg Kreuz ‘Grand Cru’ vineyard, as well as a Chardonnay and Pinot Blanc from the Jägerberg ‘Premier Cru’ vineyard. We have always loved and rated Hannes Sabathi Sauvignon Blanc wines and it was truly a delight to taste the wider range with Hannes.
Staying at Landgut am Pössnitzberg on the South Styrian wine road
Hotel Landgut am Pössnitzberg - Source: Winekeller
We opted to base ourselves at the Landgut am Pössnitzberg hotel in Pössnitz, close to Leutschach and spent a delightful few days here. It proved to be the ideal place to rest, relax and be pampered!
The rooms are large and comfortable, with superb views across the vineyards and all the facilities and amenities you could wish for as well as some extra thoughtful touches. The spa and wellness area is a highlight, along with the wonderfully inviting outdoor infinity pool, again with those fabulous views across the vineyards!
We enjoyed an excellent buffet breakfast each day and dined most evenings in the superb Kreuzwirt restaurant, where the traditional, beautifully presented dishes, the service and the excellent wines impressed every time.
It’s so incredibly peaceful here, amongst nature and there is lots of information in the hotel about activities and local walking and biking trails. We opted to follow a walking trail one morning which took us to a famous local monument - a huge bunch of grapes made out of glass, standing some 5 metres high! This monument symbolises the importance of wine here, in the second largest wine-growing municipality in Styria. We walked around 8-10kms and it was quite tough in places, mostly because of the Summer heat, but it was so worth it! The dip in the hotel pool afterwards was also quite spectacular! Note you can also hire bikes from the hotel.
Weingut Erwin Sabathi
We also took the opportunity to visit a few local wineries close to the hotel, including Weingut Erwin Sabathi, another of the 12 top STK wineries, whose wines are made from grapes grown on various plots on the steep slopes of the top-rated Pössnitzberg vineyard.
The Pössnitzberg vineyard is the most southern single vineyard in the Styria region and wines produced from here are classified as G-STK or Grand Cru STK. Recognised as a great wine terroir, with old chalk soils, it consists of a chain of hills so each plot is quite different to the next in terms of climate. This enables Erwin Sabathi to produce a range of excellent Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay wines, but also some Pinot Noir.
The Sabathi family (no relation to Hannes), have a wine-growing tradition stretching back since 1650 and Erwin took over as the 10th generation in 1992. He went on to build the impressive winery you can visit today and to create a strong brand around his name, but also heavily connected with the Pössnitzberg vineyard.
We had a superb tasting at Erwin Sabathi - for information about visiting, see here.
Visit the local Vinothek
Close to the hotel you can visit Vinofaktur - the largest vinothek shop in Styria where you can find wines of course, but also regional delicacies such as pumpkin seed oils, vineyard, jams, honey etc.
Eating in a local Buschenschank
We did manage to tear ourselves away from the hotel and the Kreuzwirt restaurant to experience a couple of the local wine taverns! A buschenschank is basically a wine tavern where you can enjoy the wines made by the owner/winery along with some local food, which is mostly in the form of cold dishes including cold cuts - roast pork, smoked meats, ham, cold sausage meat, various different local cheeses, homemade breads with flavoured butters, liver sausage spread and pumpkin seed spread and different salads.
We can highly recommend Weingut Tscheppe and Weingut Sternat in Leutschach and Der Hermannhof in Pössnitz (can walk from hotel, through the vineyard!)
Useful information for visiting South Styria - Südsteiermark - Austria
When to visit South Styria
The Spring, the Summer and the Autumn are all a great time to visit South Styria!
Where to stay
There are lots of accommodation options, in all sorts of categories, whether you prefer a small guesthouse, accommodation in a winery or a larger hotel - see here for details.
LOISIUM Wine Hotel & Spa - Loisium Steiermark
There is also an excellent option for wine lovers and that’s the LOISIUM Wine Hotel & Spa in Ehrenhausen (close to Gamlitz). With 104 rooms and suites, a spa club with an outdoor pool, an excellent restaurant and a wine shop the LOISIUM offers a great base for a visit to South Styria and its vineyards and wineries.
The hotel is part of the group of 3 Loisium Hotels, with another in Kamptal, Austria and one in Champagne in France.
For all other information and inspiration about visiting beautiful South Styria visit the official Steirmark website.
Conclusion
The photos in this article hopefully give you some idea of how beautiful South Styria is - and the wines are amazing! We hope we’ve also given you enough information and inspiration to think of visiting one day - we know you won’t be disappointed!
