Our Region - The Kremstal

The Kremstal wine-growing region lies on the south-eastern arc of the Waldviertel and the Dunkelsteiner Wald ridge, built up from hard crystalline rock, and opens out into the Alpine foothills towards the east, where unconsolidated rock prevails. The region’s location in the lee of this secondary mountain range is responsible for the widespread build-up of loess, which is very deep in parts. North of the Danube, hillsides are composed of sometimes foliated, sometimes solid paragneiss with amphibolite and granite gneiss veins; to the north-west, they are composed of Gföhl gneiss. South of the Danube, granulite prevails. The pale, very hard granulite is physically related to Gföhl gneiss, but is tightly foliated and bladed.

The unconsolidated rock in the region is primarily carbonaceous loess, which, in places, has built up in several layers. It can be found overlaying the crystalline rocks, as well as all the older gravel, sands and clays (Molasse sediment deposited by the sea and rivers) and the Danube terraces. Only the lowest vineyards on flat plots of land close to the gravelly flood plains of the Danube have no loess covering, only a thin veil of fine sediments from when the river has flooded.