Austria · Südsteiermark

Weingut Tement

A South Styrian family estate working Sauvignon Blanc and Morillon—Styria’s name for Chardonnay—across Austrian and Slovenian slopes near Ehrenhausen.

The producer

Weingut Tement traces its present wines back to 1976, when Manfred Tement took over his father’s roughly three-hectare winery after an unexpected death. The family is now joined by Armin, Stefan and Monika, and its Sauvignon Blanc links vineyards near Ehrenhausen with Domaine Ciringa, begun in 2004 on the Slovenian side of the adjoining Zieregg hill. Elevated slopes and limestone-rich sites feed dry wines with citrus, herbal fruit and marked acidity.

Kalk & Kreide Sauvignon Blanc is the broad regional expression: fruit from 50 sites, six months in stainless steel, and gooseberry, blackcurrant leaf, pear, nettle and lemon over a mineral, dry finish. Morillon Muschelkalk shifts to Chardonnay from limestone, longer maturation and oak, bringing citrus and stone fruit into a fuller, savoury texture. Ried Sulz and Ried Zieregg take the range into named-site wines, while the 2021 Ried Sulz Morillon has documented ageing potential.

Known for

Dry South Styrian Sauvignon Blanc and oak-raised Morillon from limestone-influenced sites.

Notable facts

The story

Across the Zieregg border

In 2004, the Tement family began extending its vineyard project onto the Slovenian side of Zieregg and established Domaine Ciringa. The new vineyards did not sit apart from the Austrian work: Ciringa directly adjoins Zieregg across the border. Its sites lie between 340 and 480 metres and include coralline limestone, while the family continued to work its South Styrian holdings near Ehrenhausen. Domaine Ciringa became part of the range through Slovenian Sauvignon Blanc bottlings including Fosilni Breg, Pruh and Reserve wines. The project joined two sides of one borderland hill under the same family’s vineyard work.

From the atlas

Weingut Tement

At A Glance

Weingut Tement is a family estate near Ehrenhausen in Südsteiermark, working Sauvignon Blanc and Morillon, the local name for Chardonnay, on both sides of the Austrian-Slovenian border. Its bottles move from brisk regional Sauvignon Blanc to oak-raised Morillon and named vineyard wines, so the label can lead from broad South Styrian fruit to a particular hill, soil and longer maturation.

The Producer

The estate is based at Zieregg 13, 8461 Ehrenhausen, where Manfred Tement took over his father’s wine-growing business in 1976. Armin joined in 2005 and took formal responsibility in 2008; Stefan joined in 2010, and Monika is part of the present family team. That family continuity carries into a range where Sauvignon Blanc keeps a herbal, high-acid line while Morillon receives more time in oak.

Place

Tement’s vineyards lie in Steiermark and across the nearby Slovenian border, with prized Austrian slopes facing from southeast to southwest. These elevated exposures help retain freshness while fruit ripens, which is why the Sauvignon Blancs can show lemon, gooseberry and nettle without losing their dry, energetic palate. On the Slovenian side, Domaine Ciringa directly adjoins Zieregg, extending the family’s work across one hill rather than into a separate wine landscape.

Soil And Site

Soil names are useful here because they appear in the wines. Kalk & Kreide refers to limestone and clay associated with Tement’s South Styrian vineyards; its Sauvignon Blanc is blended from 50 sites, bringing those materials into a regional wine with direct fruit and acidity. Muschelkalk denotes limestone in the Morillon range, where the 2023 wine’s citrus, stone fruit and savoury mineral character sit within a firmer, dry shape. Ciringa lies at 340 to 480 metres on coralline limestone, joining altitude and rock in its Slovenian Sauvignon Blanc sites.

Story

Tement began from a small family holding rather than a ready-made large estate. After his father died unexpectedly, Manfred inherited roughly three hectares and took over in 1976. The later family handover brought Armin and Stefan into the work, while the 2004 creation of Domaine Ciringa carried the project over the border from Zieregg. The estate’s long organic transition then reached Demeter and Respekt biodynamic certification with the 2022 vintage, tying vineyard work to fruit grown across this wider, connected set of slopes.

Vineyards And Cellar

Biodynamic certification from the 2022 vintage sets the farming frame, while the cellar separates the wines by intended shape. Kalk & Kreide Sauvignon Blanc spends six months in stainless steel, keeping pear, blackcurrant leaf and citrus close to the surface and the acidity clean-cut. Morillon Muschelkalk spends longer maturing with oak, so Chardonnay from limestone develops more body, savoury detail and a broader texture. The cellar is not used to blur the difference between grapes: Sauvignon Blanc stays aromatic and herbal; Morillon carries more oak and weight.

Wines

Kalk & Kreide Sauvignon Blanc is the regional starting level: a 50-site blend with gooseberry, pear, nettle, lemon and mineral notes, shaped as a very fresh dry wine. Morillon Muschelkalk changes grape and method together, using Chardonnay from limestone and longer oak maturation for citrus and stone fruit over a savoury, dry palate. Above these regional bottles, Ried Sulz Morillon and wines from Ried Zieregg name individual vineyards. The 2021 Ried Sulz has documented ageing potential, while Ried Zieregg IZ Reserve is a more mature reserve-level expression from the Zieregg hill. Domaine Ciringa adds Slovenian Sauvignon Blancs including Fosilni Breg, Pruh and Reserve bottlings.

In The Glass

Start with the Sauvignon Blanc line: gooseberry and pear arrive with blackcurrant leaf, nettle and lemon, then acidity keeps the palate dry and light on its feet. Kalk & Kreide’s stainless-steel maturation leaves little room for oak flavour, so fruit, herbal notes and mineral character carry the finish. Morillon changes the sequence: citrus and stone fruit come first, then oak, limestone-derived savouriness and firmer texture add body. The named-site wines place more emphasis on development and depth, with Ried Sulz built to hold beyond release rather than simply deliver immediate fruit.

A Bottle To Understand It

Start with Kalk & Kreide Sauvignon Blanc. It gathers fruit from 50 South Styrian sites and names the limestone-and-clay ground in its title, while six months in stainless steel keep the wine dry, aromatic and driven by acidity. Expect gooseberry, blackcurrant leaf, pear, nettle and lemon rather than oak or creamy texture. It is the clearest first view of Tement’s Sauvignon Blanc: a regional blend whose fresh fruit and mineral notes show how the estate handles its broadest vineyard base.

Anecdote

Manfred Tement’s father died unexpectedly, leaving him the family winery of roughly three hectares. In 1976, Manfred took over the wine-growing business. The estate was then a small family holding, with the vineyard work and cellar attached to one household near Ehrenhausen. The dates that followed chart the family’s next entries into that work: Armin joined in 2005 and formally took the reins in 2008, while Stefan joined in 2010. In 2004, before that formal handover, the family had begun Domaine Ciringa on the Slovenian side of the border, directly adjoining Zieregg.

Final Word

Tement is most clearly understood through two grapes and two approaches: stainless-steel Sauvignon Blanc for herbal fruit and acidity, then oak-raised Morillon for citrus, savoury texture and more body. From there, Zieregg, Sulz and Ciringa turn place names into increasingly specific bottles.

Sources

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