On some of the highest and steepest winegrowing slopes in all of Central Europe, where winegrowing was documented as early as 1757, a pair of brothers continue their family tradition. Bernhard and Stefan Schauer have taken over the reins of their family’s winery and brought their own passion to this corner of Südsteiermark in southern Austria. Records in the village church document the early winemaking of the Schauer family. Once a farm of mixed agriculture, the crop is now grapevines. Grown on the top of hillsides, the vines thrive in the slate and schist-rich soil.
Since the beginning, there has always been a Schauer family winemaker overseeing viticulture and winemaking in Kitzeck-Sausal. Both the great-grandfather and grandfather of the present generation were farmers and made wine. In 1980, Karl Schauer completed the conversion of all farming to grapevines. In 2010, he passed primary responsibility for the estate to sons Stefan and Bernhard. The brothers are passionate winegrowers who always work together, in the vineyards, in the cellar, or in their parents’ Buschenschank (traditional Austrian wine tavern) and guesthouse. Stefan is the winemaker and runs the winery with Bernhard, who handles marketing and all administration. Stefan went to school for viticulture, then worked for wineries in Italy and the Wachau before returning home. Bernhard studied hospitality, then spent a year in Britain, another on a cruise ship, and then in the Austrian national tourism office. They have grown the winery quickly in the past 10 years: from 10 hectares in 2010 to 28 hectares in 2019.
Country | Austria |
Region | Styria |
Appellation(s) | Südsteiermark |
Proprietors | Bernhard & Stefan Schauer |
Founded | 1757 |
Winemaker | Stefan Schauer |
Annual Production | 8,333 9L cases |
Farming (Sustainable, organic, biodynamic) | Sustainable |
Wine | Blend | Vine Age | Soil Type | Vineyard Area ha or acres |
Sauvignon Blanc Sudsteiermark | Sauvignon Blanc | 5-30 years | Slate, sand, shell limestone, clay | 17.29 acres / 7 ha, sourced from different vineyards within the three villages of Kitzeck-Sausal, Gamlitz, Eichberg-Grossklein |
Sauvignon Blanc Kitzeck-Sausal | Sauvignon Blanc | 15-50 years | slate | 4.94 acres / 2 ha, sourced from three different vineyards within the village Kitzeck-Sausal (Ried Gaisriegl, Ried Mellacher, Ried Kleingauitsch) |
Sauvignon Blanc Ried Goldes | Sauvignon Blanc | planted 2006 | sand, clay | 2.22 acres / 0,9 hectares |
Sauvignon Blanc Ried Gaisriegl | Sauvignon Blanc | Planted 1997 | slate | 6.18 acres /2,5 hectares |
Riesling Kitzeck-Sausal | Riesling | 15-30 years | slate | 8.65 acres / 3,5 ha, sourced from two different vineyards within the village Kitzeck-Sausal (Ried Gaisriegl, Ried Hinteregg) |
Weissburgunder Ried Hochtemmel | Weissburgunder, Pinot Blanc | Planted 1983 | slate | 2.47 acres / 1 hectare |
Our wines
- Riesling Kitzeck-Sausal - 2018
- Sauvignon Blanc Kitzeck-Sausal - 2018
- Sauvignon Blanc Kitzeck-Sausal - 2019
- Sauvignon Blanc Kitzeck-Sausal - 2020
- Sauvignon Blanc Ried Gaisriegl - 2017
- Sauvignon Blanc Ried Gaisriegl - 2020
- Sauvignon Blanc Ried Goldes -2018
- Sauvignon Blanc Südsteiermark - 2018
- Sauvignon Blanc Südsteiermark - 2020
- Sauvignon Blanc Südsteiermark Quarz & Schiefer - 2021
- Weissburgunder Ried Hochtemmel - 2017
Reviews by wine
- Weissburgunder Ried Hochtemmel - 2017
- Sauvignon Blanc Südsteiermark - 2020
- Sauvignon Blanc Südsteiermark - 2018
- Sauvignon Blanc Ried Goldes -2018
- Sauvignon Blanc Ried Gaisriegl - 2020
- Sauvignon Blanc Ried Gaisriegl - 2017
- Sauvignon Blanc Kitzeck-Sausal - 2020
- Sauvignon Blanc Kitzeck-Sausal - 2019
- Sauvignon Blanc Kitzeck-Sausal - 2018
- Riesling Kitzeck-Sausal - 2018