The region of Carnuntum has always been influenced by the historical legacy of the Roman past as well as by the traditions that stem from the cultivation of wine. Many archaeological witnesses and evaluations of the remains of plants give important clues about the cultivation of wine in those days. There are archaeological indications of the beginnings of viniculture in the Pannonian area during the 1st millennium BC.
Emperor M. Aurelius Probus (276 - 282 AD) was always named as the person responsible for bringing the cultivation of wine to this region. In actual fact he successfully brought about relief from earlier legal constraints in the northern and western provinces.
It is not possible to say exactly which wines were grown in this region in Roman times. It is probable that both white wines and red wines were grown here (vinum album and vinum atrum).
As wine was a bulk commodity which was part of the staple diet of all classes of society, it was one of the most important goods traded in the Roman Empire. The following quotation aptly demonstrates the high regard that wine enjoyed in ancient Roman times (also in our region):
“Wine is the most useful of drinks, the tastiest of medications, the most pleasant of foods.”
Viniculture today
Carnuntum is situated in the southeast of Lower Austria. Its Pannonian climate favours strong, fruity wines. The splendid countryside surrounding Goettlesbrunn, Arbesthal and Hoeflein as well as Prellenkirchen and Berg shows viniculture at its best.
For a long time the Carnuntum region was overshadowed by more famous wine-growing areas, but now what was once an insider tip has become a glorious star. This is thanks to the powerful soils, the influence of Lake Neusiedl and the cool winds from the Danube riparian wetlands – and especially thanks to the young wine-growers in this region, who knew how to make use of the potential that was always here.
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