The South Styrian Wine Road in autumn: wine, inns and where to stay
About 25 kilometres between Ehrenhausen and Leutschach, and in places the road itself is the border with Slovenia. Where to taste, eat and sleep among the vines in autumn.
The South Styrian Wine Road is the oldest wine road in Styria. Over about 25 kilometres it links villages such as Ratsch, Sulztal and Glanz; on some stretches the road itself forms the border with Slovenia. You reach it via Ehrenhausen, Gamlitz, Spielfeld and Leutschach.
Autumn is its busiest time of year. The harvest is under way, some wineries open extra days at this time, and a few places only close for winter at the end of November. Here is what we suggest for a few days on the wine road.
Staying at a winery: Wolfgang Maitz in Ratsch
The Wolfgang Maitz estate is in Ratsch, where winemaking, an inn and a wine hotel belong together. Josef and Maria Maitz bought a five hectare estate in 1957 and opened a Buschenschank, a simple wine tavern. Today Wolfgang Maitz junior runs it with Carina Kaiser, the third generation; since 2013 the estate has been a member of the Styrian Terroir and Classic wineries (STK).
The house groups its wines by origin, from the regional Südsteiermark DAC and the village wine Ehrenhausen to the single vineyards Sulz, Krois, Schusterberg and Hochstermetzberg. The website gives no fixed tasting hours; if you want to taste, ask ahead.
The wine hotel has double rooms and suites in several categories, with a balcony or terrace depending on the room; four suites are step free, according to the house. For longer stays the family also lets the Schusterberg holiday house, a 150 m² log house among its own vineyards, and two apartments for adults only.
The inn serves regional dishes or food with a Mediterranean touch, with wines from the estate's own cellar. According to the website it is open Tuesday to Saturday and closed on Sundays and Mondays. If you arrive on one of those days, plan dinner elsewhere.
Tasting in autumn
At the Tement estate in Zieregg you can taste current vintages and selected older wines during opening hours without an appointment, Monday to Saturday, according to the winery. During the harvest, from mid September to mid October, it is also open on Sundays, according to its website. With an appointment there is a guided tasting and a tour of the estate.
Kollerhof am Eichberg near Leutschach focuses on fungus resistant grape varieties, known as PIWIs. Until October the farm offers a cellar tour with a tasting; it also has a Buschenschank and guest rooms.
Where to eat on the wine road
For lunch, Weinkehr in the centre of Gamlitz is an inn with Austrian cooking and a keen eye for wine. For dinner: Lilli & Jojo in Sulztal, menus of three courses or more with a view over the Styrian and Slovenian wine country, open until 30 November according to its website. Or Die Weinbank in Ehrenhausen, a restaurant without a menu, an inn and a wine shop with more than 5,100 wines on its list, according to the house; it is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.
If you want to eat and stay in one place: Lieperts in Leutschach serves a surprise menu in the evening and has four double rooms. In the Sausal, in St. Andrä, Harald Irka am Pfarrhof has a fine dining restaurant, an inn and six guest rooms.
Wherever you go: book ahead and check closing days. Many places close two days a week, and not always the same two.
The view from above
The Demmerkogel lookout tower, opened in 2023, stands on the highest point of the Sausal wine country; its platform at 23.8 metres gives a view in every direction. There is no parking at the tower itself. According to the municipality you park below the big Klapotetz, the wooden wind rattle typical of the region, and walk for about 15 minutes.
Two days on the wine road: our suggestion
Day one: arrive at the Maitz estate, taste at Tement in Zieregg in the morning, have lunch at Weinkehr in Gamlitz, then drive the wine road towards Leutschach. Dinner at the Maitz inn or at Lilli & Jojo in Sulztal.
Day two: up to the Demmerkogel. To stay in the Sausal, book dinner at Harald Irka am Pfarrhof; for a menu without a menu card, Die Weinbank in Ehrenhausen.
And if you want to go further: far to the north of Styria lies Steirereck am Pogusch with its greenhouse. It is a trip of its own, not a detour from the wine road.
