Shielded from the Danube: Understanding the Advantageous Altitude of Köglerberg
Narrow dry stone terraces protect the vineyards from erosion. They extend at altitudes between 240–390m above sea level, well above the River Danube. The crystalline bedrock here consists mainly of mica schist with a few intercalations of gneiss.
The soil on the mica schists is very poor. The advantage of this distance from the Danube is that the higher humidity of the air near the Danube rarely reaches the grapes at Kögl in autumn, thus botrytis is hardly a problem. The stony and shallow soil is ideal for Riesling, the variety primarily planted here.
