There are famous wine regions because everyone knows them. And then there are wine regions where you suddenly realise that something truly special has been hiding in plain sight. For me, Thermenregion is one of those places. I have actually known Rotgipfler and Zierfandler for quite some time. They weren’t completely new discoveries at the VieVinum masterclass. In fact, Zierfandler has a particularly special place in my wine story because my first encounter with the variety was not in Austria, but in Hungary.
Many years ago, I came across Zierfandler, known locally as Cirfandli, around Pécs. There are still vineyards of the variety around Pécs today, with around 17 hectares reported in the Pécs wine region in 2026. I remember being fascinated by it. It was so different from the varieties I knew well, and there was something about its combination of richness and freshness that immediately caught my attention.
That was when I fell in love with Zierfandler. So when I attended the “7 Decades of Thermenregion” masterclass at VieVinum, I wasn’t discovering these grapes for the first time. What I was discovering was something even more interesting: just how beautifully they can age.
The idea of the masterclass was simple but brilliant. We tasted ten wines covering seven decades, from 2023 all the way back to 1968. Four Rotgipfler, four Zierfandler, and two traditional sweet blends of the two varieties. Seventy years of Thermenregion in ten glasses.
And tasting them side by side made something very clear to me: Rotgipfler and Zierfandler are not simply rare Austrian grape varieties. They are varieties with personality, history and serious ageing potential.
Thermenregion: Austria’s wine country just south of Vienna
The Thermenregion stretches from the southern city limits of Vienna along the western edge of the Vienna Woods towards the southwest. It covers around 2,181 hectares and includes 42 wine-growing communities, with places such as Gumpoldskirchen, Baden, Pfaffstätten, Sooß, Traiskirchen, Mödling, Tattendorf and Bad Vöslau among its best-known wine centres.
The landscape is rather beautiful, too. The vineyards sit on the slopes and foothills of the Vienna Woods, often facing east, southeast or south. The region has a Pannonian-influenced climate with plenty of sunshine, hot and dry summers and generally dry autumns. At the same time, the Vienna Woods help protect the vineyards from strong western winds, while cooler evening air helps maintain freshness and acidity in the grapes.
And then there is the soil. Thermenregion sits on a geological fault line where the Northern Limestone Alps meet the Vienna Basin. Around 19 million years ago, an ancient sea covered the area, leaving behind limestone-rich deposits and marine fossils. The calcareous soils and the warm, dry climate are particularly well suited to Rotgipfler and Zierfandler.
It is one of those places where the geology actually helps explain what is in the glass.
A region with a long wine history
The Thermenregion is not a new wine region trying to create an identity around two unusual grapes. Wine has been produced here for more than 2,000 years. The Celts were already cultivating vines in the wider area, and the Romans later developed viticulture further. After the Roman period, monastic orders became important in the development of wine production, while the aristocracy also helped establish the reputation of the vineyards south of Vienna.
From the 15th century onwards, wine trading became increasingly important, and Gumpoldskirchen developed into an internationally recognised name. The wines were in demand far beyond Austria. The region later went through a difficult period. The Austrian wine scandal of the 1980s hit Thermenregion hard, and producers had to rebuild their reputation through a renewed focus on quality.
The modern Thermenregion was established through the Austrian wine law of 1985, which united the formerly separate wine-growing areas of Gumpoldskirchen and Bad Vöslau. Today, the region is once again putting its distinctive varieties at the centre of its identity.
Rotgipfler: richer, spicier and built for ageing
Let’s start with Rotgipfler. Despite its rather dramatic name, Rotgipfler is a white grape variety. The name refers to the reddish-bronze tips of the vine shoots rather than the colour of the grapes. It is a natural crossing of Traminer and Roter Veltliner, and today it is grown almost exclusively in the Thermenregion. The variety was first documented in 1837.
Historically, Rotgipfler was often not bottled on its own, but used in blends, particularly with Zierfandler and sometimes Neuburger under the famous Gumpoldskirchner designation. The official Thermenregion description talks about a wine that is rich in extract but retains a fine-boned acid structure, with melon, mango, and juicy pear in its youth and baked apple and toasty notes as it matures.
But there was another description from the masterclass that I liked even more.
Max Weber summed it up beautifully:
“Rotgipfler is somewhere between Rhône whites and Burgundian Chardonnay.”
And after tasting the wines, I can see why. There is something naturally generous about Rotgipfler. It can be creamy and broad, but it also has enough acidity and spice to stop it becoming heavy. It has fruit, but the wines are rarely just about fruit. That became particularly obvious as we moved through the different vintages.
Rotgipfler across the decades
The Weingut Drexler-Leeb – Rotgipfler Thermenregion DAC Ried Herzogberg 2023 was a very expressive starting point. On the nose, I found white peach and apricot, together with lots of spice, sweet cooking spices, and a creamy note. The palate was even spicier, with the aromas returning as flavours alongside a peppery character. The freshness was excellent, leading into a long stone-fruit finish. Balanced and long.
The Winzerfamilie Gregor Schup – Rotgipfler Gumpoldskirchen Ried Schwaben 2021 felt slightly more mature and generous. The nose had a sweeter impression, with melted butter, while the palate became noticeably spicier. It had a full body and a very long spicy finish.
Then came the Weingut Alphart – Rotgipfler Ried Rodauner 1ÖTW Top Selektion 2020, which showed even more texture. It was super creamy, with an almost honeyed impression, but again supported by spice and stone-fruit flavours.
And the Leo Aumann – Rotgipfler Ried Flamming 2011. This was one of those wines that makes you stop for a moment. Despite its age, it still felt youthful and very balanced. Some tertiary aromas had started to appear, but the wine remained remarkably fresh, with the same spicy signature and a long finish.
I have tasted Rotgipfler before. I already knew that I liked it. But tasting the 2011 next to much younger examples was different. This was when I really started to understand its ageing potential.
Zierfandler: the rare one that stole my heart years ago
If Rotgipfler is already a relatively obscure grape internationally, Zierfandler takes things another step further. Today, it is practically only found in the Thermenregion in Austria, where it is planted on around 72 hectares. But the official history of the variety also points to Hungary, where Zierfandler was once much more widespread.
That makes sense to me personally, because this is where my own Zierfandler story began. In Hungary, the variety is known as Cirfandli, and the Pécs wine region still has vineyards dedicated to it. The variety was brought from Gumpoldskirchen to Pécs in the 1850s, where it found a particularly suitable home on the sunny, sheltered slopes around the Mecsek.
That first taste many years ago was my introduction to Zierfandler, and I fell in love with it. So I have followed the variety with a little more curiosity ever since. But what I hadn’t really experienced before was what happens when you give a great Zierfandler several decades in the bottle. That was the real revelation of this masterclass.
Zierfandler is also known as Spätrot, or “late red”, because the grape bunches develop a reddish colour on their sun-exposed side when they reach full ripeness. And just to avoid one common confusion: this has absolutely nothing to do with California’s Zinfandel.
Genetically, Zierfandler is considered a natural crossing of Roter Veltliner and a relative of Traminer. Historically, it was grown more widely, including in Hungary and the South Banat region of Serbia. The grape is also a little demanding. It ripens late, usually around two weeks after Rotgipfler, and prefers good, south-facing sites. It is sensitive to frost and botrytis, while the warm, dry climate and calcareous soils of the Thermenregion suit it particularly well.
In the glass, Zierfandler has an intriguing balance between richness and acidity. Young wines can show citrus and pineapple, while mature examples develop dried-fruit and meadow-flower aromas. And that combination is exactly what makes it so fascinating.
Zierfandler across the decades
The Weingut Familie Auer – Zierfandler Preisen Bio 2023 opened with lemon, citrus, ripe peach, and ripe pear. It had a creamy, slightly buttery character with vanilla, followed by a round, creamy texture. The fruit remained at the forefront, with subtle oaky flavours appearing towards the end. Beautifully fresh and balanced.
The Weingut Alphart am Mühlbach – Zierfandler Ried Otzler 2021 was slightly spicier, with more tannic structure and a great sense of freshness. Stone fruits and sweet cooking spices dominated the long finish.
With the Weingut Gebeshuber – Zierfandler Thermenregion DAC Ried Wiege 1ÖTW 2019, the wine became more honeyed. There were pear and quince aromas on the nose, followed by a full-bodied but very fresh palate. The spice became more pronounced with time in the glass, and the wine showed an aromatic, powerful structure with some tannin.
And then came the Weingut Stadlmann – Igeln Zierfandler 2006. This was the most honeyed of all the Zierfandlers on both the nose and palate, yet it was still remarkably youthful. There was plenty of freshness, medium-plus body and beautiful balance, finishing with what felt like a never-ending creamy, honeyed finish. The tannins were lower here, making the wine increasingly smooth.
Again, I already knew I loved Zierfandler. But the 2006 showed me a side of it I had never really had the chance to experience. This is a variety that can age. Really age.
Rotgipfler and Zierfandler: made for each other?
Historically, the answer would very much be yes. Before varietal bottlings became more common, Rotgipfler and Zierfandler were frequently blended. The famous Gumpoldskirchner wines traditionally included these varieties, and Spätrot-Rotgipfler became another established combination of Zierfandler and Rotgipfler.
There is even a traditional Gumpoldskirchen blend called Königswein, produced since 1958 and recognised as the oldest registered trademark for an Austrian wine.
And tasting the two varieties separately makes it easy to understand why the partnership works. Rotgipfler brings body, texture, fruit and spice. Zierfandler brings freshness, acidity, extract and a slightly different aromatic profile. Together, they can create wines that are both rich and energetic.
Two wines that completely changed the perspective
Our final two wines of the masterclass showed what happens when you then add time and higher levels of ripeness.
The Winzergenossenschaft Gumpoldskirchner Zierfandler/Rotgipfler Spätlese 1977 was beautifully complex. The nose was filled with nuts, honey, beeswax, and cream. On the palate, the nutty character became even more dominant, while the honey appeared almost as part of the texture. Despite the richness, the wine remained balanced and fresh, with a long, nutty-creamy finish.
The Winzergenossenschaft Gumpoldskirchner Zierfandler/Rotgipfler Auslese Ried Grimling 1968 was the kind of wine that makes a masterclass like this worth attending. The nose was incredibly creamy and firmly balanced. On the palate, it actually felt drier than expected, but what surprised me most was how fresh and lifted it remained. Apricot marmalade, honey, and just a touch of nuts developed beautifully, followed by an almost endless finish. Excellent. Beautiful.
And suddenly, that phrase “ageing potential” stops being a theoretical concept. You can taste it.
Why Rotgipfler and Zierfandler deserve more attention
We often talk about Austria’s Grüner Veltliner and Riesling when discussing serious white wines. We talk about their different styles, their vineyard expressions, and their ability to age. But Rotgipfler and Zierfandler deserve a place in that conversation too. They are rare, they are unmistakably connected to their home region, and they can produce wines that combine richness with acidity, texture with freshness, and youthful fruit with remarkable complexity as they age.
And for me, there is an added personal reason to keep talking about them. Zierfandler was one of those grapes that made me realise early on that wine doesn’t always have to be about the famous names. Sometimes the most exciting discovery is a variety you had never heard of, from a place you didn’t expect. Years later, tasting Zierfandler again in the Thermenregion — and then tasting it from 2006, 1977 and 1968 — gave me a completely new perspective on that first love.
I already knew these varieties. Now I know what they can become. Perhaps their biggest weakness is also their biggest attraction: you have to look for them.
You are unlikely to stumble across Rotgipfler or Zierfandler in every supermarket or wine bar. These are not international varieties with vineyards scattered around the world. They belong to a small number of places, with the Thermenregion at the heart of their modern identity and Pécs keeping its own fascinating Hungarian chapter of the Zierfandler story alive.
And perhaps that is exactly why they feel so interesting. After tasting seven decades of Thermenregion wines at VieVinum, I came away thinking that Rotgipfler and Zierfandler are not simply two obscure grape varieties that wine lovers should know because they are unusual. They are one of Austria’s best-kept white wine secrets for a much more important reason. They have something to say.
And, as those bottles from 1977 and 1968 proved, they can keep saying it for a very, very long time.
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