Austria · Kamptal

Weingut Rabl

A family estate in Langenlois, Kamptal, farming 80 hectares across Grüner Veltliner, Riesling, Zweigelt, rosé and Eiswein.

The producer

Weingut Rabl grew from an eighteenth-century mixed farm into an 80-hectare Kamptal estate led by Rudi and Christiane Rabl. Langenlois sites give Riesling and Grüner Veltliner different shapes: rocky slopes bring citrus, mineral notes and acidity, while deeper soils can lend Grüner Veltliner more body and texture. Rudi joined the family business in 1986; Johanna and Tobias joined in 2023, with Tobias focused on cellar work.

The range moves well beyond one dry-white style. Stainless-steel Zweigelt Rosé is light, fruit-led and brisk; Zweigelt Alte Reben brings darker fruit, firmer tannin and savoury grip. Grüner Veltliner Eiswein shows another side of the cellar: fully frozen grapes are pressed, separating water from the concentrated juice. The 2022 wine carries 217 g/l residual sugar, held in shape by 8.5 g/l acidity.

Known for

Broad Kamptal range: site-led Grüner Veltliner and Riesling, structured Zweigelt, rosé and concentrated Eiswein.

Notable facts

The story

A White-Wine Award, Twice

In 2019, Rudi Rabl received the IWSC White Wine Maker of the Year award. Two years later, in 2021, the competition gave him the same distinction again. The awards came from a family winery in Langenlois whose history reaches back to an eighteenth-century mixed farm, with part of its vaulted cellar now more than 300 years old. Rudi had joined the family business in 1986. By 2023, Johanna and Tobias Rabl had also formally joined: Johanna took on marketing, logistics and sales, while Tobias concentrated on cellar work. The repeat award belongs to two dated IWSC results, received by Rudi before the next generation entered the business.

From the atlas

Weingut Rabl

At A Glance

Weingut Rabl is a family estate in Langenlois, in Austria’s Kamptal region. Rudi and Christiane Rabl lead 80 hectares of vineyards, while Johanna and Tobias Rabl joined the business in 2023. The range runs from Grüner Veltliner and Riesling to Zweigelt, rosé and Eiswein, so the estate offers dry whites, structured reds and sweet wine rather than one narrow house style.

The Producer

Rabl’s centre of gravity is Langenlois, a Kamptal town whose name appears on Ortswein labels: wines made to show the character of the village rather than one single vineyard. The family works named sites around the town, and the resulting wines move from fresh, fruit-led regional bottlings to denser Riedenwein from individual vineyards. Grüner Veltliner and Riesling carry much of that site work, while Zweigelt gives the cellar a red-wine voice.

Place

Kamptal’s DAC hierarchy gives useful clues on a Rabl label. Gebietswein comes from the wider region and is made for young, fresh fruit; an Ortswein marked Langenlois narrows the origin to the village; Riedenwein comes from a named vineyard and is intended to carry more density and length. At Rabl, this structure lets Riesling and Grüner Veltliner move from broad Kamptal refreshment towards wines tied to particular slopes.

Langenlois also gives Rabl room for more than its dry white wines. The estate’s 80 hectares include sites with cooler wind exposure and others with warmer or more sheltered conditions, so grape choice can follow the ground: Riesling on crystalline slopes, Grüner Veltliner in deeper soils, and red varieties including Zweigelt in the wider range.

Soil And Site

Steinberg combines acidic gneiss with dry, sandy, gravelly brown soil, a setting Rabl uses for Riesling. The lean ground and dry surface direct attention toward citrus, acidity and mineral notes rather than broad body. At Steinhaus, Riesling occupies the higher gneiss and schist, while deeper soils lower down suit Grüner Veltliner; the same vineyard name can therefore lead to different grape and texture outcomes.

Loiserberg is cooler and windier, with mixed crystalline rocks, conditions that support a firmer, more acid-driven line in the wines. Käferberg, Schenkenbichl and Spiegel are warmer or more sheltered by comparison. Across these sites, slope and soil are not decorative label details: they determine which grapes are planted and whether a bottle leans toward citrus lift, fuller fruit or more weight on the palate.

Story

The Rabl property was a mixed farm around 1750, and part of its vaulted cellar is now more than 300 years old. Wine became the estate’s present-day focus through family succession: Rudolf and Traude Rabl took responsibility in 1968, Rudi Rabl entered the business in 1986, and Johanna and Tobias arrived in 2023. The long family record now meets a broad 80-hectare wine operation, with Tobias concentrating on cellar work and Johanna on marketing, logistics and sales.

That continuity is visible in the range. Old Langenlois sites support Riesling and Grüner Veltliner, while the cellar also bottles Zweigelt as rosé and old-vine red, then pushes Grüner Veltliner into sweet Eiswein. The result is a producer whose bottles show several practical uses for the same region: dry everyday wines, site-led wines, red wine and a small-format sweet wine.

Vineyards And Cellar

Rabl reports substantial hand labour in its best Langenlois sites, a useful approach where vineyard parcels differ in slope and soil. The estate has held Nachhaltig Austria certification since 2015 and states that it works without insecticides or herbicides, with biodiversity measures, reduced vineyard passes, renewable energy and water-saving farming. Those choices keep the work focused on fruit from particular sites rather than a uniform vineyard treatment.

In the cellar, spontaneous fermentation, extended skin contact, fermentation at 20–21°C and fermentations lasting from eight weeks to four months are standard practices. Slow fermentation and skin contact can add texture and aromatic depth, so the wines need not rely on oak for body. The documented Zweigelt Rosé is raised in stainless steel, which keeps its fruit and acidity in a lighter frame, while the old-vine Zweigelt carries more dark-fruit weight and grip.

Wines

The white range includes Grüner Veltliner, Riesling, Welschriesling, Frühroter Veltliner, Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Gelber Muskateller. Grüner Veltliner and Riesling are the clearest route into Kamptal’s origin hierarchy: regional wines favour fresh fruit, Langenlois wines bring the village onto the label, and Riedenwein brings an individual site into focus. Riesling from rocky slopes can emphasise citrus, mineral character and acidity; Grüner Veltliner from deeper soils can bring more body and texture.

The reds include Zweigelt, Blauburger, St. Laurent, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Pinot Noir. Rabl Zweigelt Rosé 2023 is the light, stainless-steel end of the red-grape work, while Zweigelt Alte Reben 2021 is a more structured old-vine red with darker fruit and firmer palate shape. Grüner Veltliner Eiswein 2022 sits apart from both: fully frozen grapes are pressed so frozen water separates from the juice, leaving a sweet, concentrated must with substantial acidity.

In The Glass

Zweigelt Rosé 2023 begins with a fresh fruit-led aroma and stays light in body. Stainless-steel élevage keeps the fruit direct, while acidity gives the palate a clean, dry-feeling finish rather than oak weight.

Zweigelt Alte Reben 2021 moves toward darker fruit, more body and firmer tannin. Old vines supply the concentration behind its structured palate, so the finish has more grip and savoury weight than the rosé.

Grüner Veltliner Eiswein 2022 is intensely sweet but not soft. Its 217 g/l residual sugar is balanced by 8.5 g/l acidity, and the frozen-grape pressing concentrates fruit in a 0.375-litre bottle. At 8.5% alcohol, it carries sweetness and acidity in a dense, bright texture with a long finish.

A Bottle To Understand It

Start with Grüner Veltliner Eiswein 2022. It is an unusually clear view of Rabl’s range because one Kamptal grape becomes a sweet wine through a specific harvest and pressing method, rather than through late-picked richness alone. Fully frozen grapes are pressed, frozen water is left behind, and the remaining juice reaches 217 g/l residual sugar while retaining 8.5 g/l acidity. Expect concentrated fruit, sweet weight and a vivid acid line; it shows how this producer can take Grüner Veltliner far beyond a dry white table wine.

Anecdote

In 2019, Rudi Rabl received the IWSC White Wine Maker of the Year award. Two years later, in 2021, the competition gave him the same distinction again. The two awards sit within a family business whose Langenlois history reaches back to an eighteenth-century mixed farm and whose cellar includes vaulting more than 300 years old. By the time of the second award, the estate was working 80 hectares in Kamptal; in 2023, Johanna and Tobias Rabl joined the business, with Johanna taking marketing, logistics and sales and Tobias moving into cellar work.

Final Word

Rabl is worth seeking out for the contrast within one Langenlois family estate: citrus- and mineral-led Riesling from rocky sites, textured Grüner Veltliner from deeper soils, dark-fruited Zweigelt with tannin, and Eiswein whose sweetness is held in shape by acidity.

Sources

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