Burgenland – All about sweet wines

Kracher’s Cuvée Spätlese – a compelling sweet entry-level wine

15. July 202621. June 2026 by Karl-Heinz Datum

Spätlese is a wine made from late-harvested grapes defined by the sugar content of the grapes at the time of harvest and can be either dry or sweet (fruit-sweet). Depending on the grape variety and growing region, the minimum must weights for this category range from 76° to 95° Oechsle in Germany. In Austria, the minimum must weight is 19° KMW (*Klosterneuburger Mostwaage*), which corresponds to slightly more than 94° Oechsle. In Austria, *Spätlese* wines are predominantly vinified as dry wines—meaning a residual sugar level

Minty-Fresh Beerenauslese from the Leithaberg

17. May 20269. March 2026 by Karl-Heinz Datum

View of Jois and Leithaberg © ÖWM / WSNA

Located to the west of Lake Neusiedl and the Leitha Mountains, Jois lies in the northern part of the wine-growing region of the same name—a region that extends southward as far as Mörbisch, at the southern end of Lake Neusiedl. It is in Jois that one finds the Martin Pasler Winery, whose Beerenauslese we tasted. Established in the 17th century, the winery has been managed by Martin Pasler since 1994—and has been farmed organically since the year 2000.

Tschida’s TBA from Sämling 88

17. May 202611. February 2026 by Karl-Heinz Datum

Harvesting Reed Wine at Weingut Angerhof Tschida © Gregor Schiefer

For the 11th time, Hans Tschida of ⁄ was named “Sweet Winemaker of the Year” in the autumn of 2025.

Sauvignon Blanc BA from black earth with gravel

2. June 20257. September 2024 by Karl-Heinz Datum

Klaus and Mecki served a 2018 Sauvignon Blanc Beerenauslese (BA) from the Robert Goldenits winery in Burgenland with a lemon sorbet garnished with aged balsamic vinegar. The winery, which I previously knew more for its red wines, is located in the extreme southeast of the Neusiedlersee wine-growing region, in Tadten.

Velich’s finely spicy Beerenauslese

2. June 20252. July 2024 by Karl-Heinz Datum

Draw well near Illmitz, Neusiedlersee © ÖWM/WSNA

The Seewinkel, originally the area east of Lake Neusiedl in the area of the towns of Podersdorf, Apetlon and Illmitz, is known worldwide for its noble sweet wines. The indication of the narrower origin “Seewinkel” for noble sweet Neusiedlersee DAC Reserve is only permitted if the grapes come from the communities of Apetlon, Illmitz and/or Podersdorf.

Kracher: Cuvée Auslese 2021 – Red Roses BA 2020

22. May 20243. April 2024 by Karl-Heinz Datum

Chardonnay, a popular, versatile and widely grown international white grape variety, is known for a wide range of dry wine styles. But there are also sweet Chardonnay wines: In Burgenland, the variety, due to the fact that Botrytis, is more common there, delivers interesting sweet wines.

The Weinlaubenhof Kracher, world-famous for its sweet wines, not only has excellent Trockenbeerenauslesen (TBA), such as the TBA N ° 4 Nouvelle Vague 2010 made from chardonnay, but also a TBA … Read more ...

Syss 3.0 – unconventional Burgenland sweet wine cuvèe

2. June 202513. February 2024 by Karl-Heinz Datum

The Syss 3.0 from the Kloster am Spitz winery is really a bit unconventional, as it combines Eiswein 1990 and TBA 1998 from Neuburger and Scheurebe from the Purbacher Riede Zelter with a fresh Rosenmuskateller 2022. It has been created by Thomas Schwarz, the winemaker of the Syss 3.0.

Kracher’s Non-Vintage Noble Reserve TBA

2. June 202527. August 2023 by Karl-Heinz Datum

The best-known Austrian noble sweet wines probably come from Rust and Seewinkel, located east of Lake Neusiedl. The climate prevailing on Lake Neusiedl particularly favors the development of Botrytis, which makes it possible to harvest grapes for Beeren- and Trockenbeerenauslese in almost all years. On the east side, the botrytis development is by a variety of

Furmint Auslese from the Ruster gravel

2. June 20258. March 2023 by Karl-Heinz Datum

Furmint comes from the Tokaj region in northeastern Hungary, known for its sweet Aszú wines called Tokaji. The late ripening of the variety, the loose grapes with their thin-skinned berries and above all the susceptibility to noble rot (botrytis) make the variety very suitable for the production of sweet wines. However, Furmint also delivers first-class, fiery, full-bodied,

Shakespeare – Burgenland Port

2. June 202523. October 2022 by Karl-Heinz Datum

Ried Ratschen Eisenberg DAC © ÖWM / Robert Herbst

A sweet wine from the 2015 vintage, alcohol-fortifed in the style of port wine, was the last tasted wine in the master class “Blaufränkisch and Zweigelt re-thought”, which was conducted jointly mid-October by Thomas Curtius, MW (Master of Wine), and Georg Schweitzer WA, (Wine Academic and Managing Director of Wein Burgenland).

+ More