Sekt Austria

Sekt g.U. · base tier

Sekt Austria is the base tier of Austrian Sekt with protected origin: grapes from one federal state, bottle or tank fermentation, and at least 9 months on the lees in bottle or 6 months in tank.1

Rules

  • Origin: grapes from one federal state (Bundesland), which is stated as the protected origin. No narrower geographic name is allowed at this tier.1
  • Grapes: only varieties approved for Austrian Qualitätswein.1
  • Method: second fermentation in bottle or in tank, following EU Regulation 2019/934 on oenological practices.1
  • Time on lees: at least 9 months in bottle, or 6 months in tank, counted from tirage until the wine leaves the producer.1

Place in the system

Sekt Austria is the first of three tiers set by the Sektbezeichnungsverordnung. The upper tiers require the traditional method, hand harvest and longer ageing:1,2

TierMinimum on leesOrigin
Sekt Austria9 months (bottle), 6 months (tank)one federal state
Reserve18 monthsone federal state
Große Reserve36 monthsone Gemeinde

The end of "Klassik"

Since the 2023 amendment, "Klassik" (and variants such as "Classic") may not appear on Sekt g.U. Bottles labelled before the change may be sold until stocks run out.1

On the bottle

A tier name is granted only after analysis and tasting at a federal testing institute, and the bottle must carry the mark "Österreichischer Sekt geschützter Ursprung".1 The optional word "Hauersekt" may be added to the product name.1

See also

AustriaRegionsSekt Austria ReserveRegionsSekt Austria Große ReserveRegionsTank methodMethodsTraditional methodMethodsAgeing on leesMethods

Sources

  1. Rechtsinformationssystem des Bundes (RIS). Sektbezeichnungsverordnung, BGBl. II Nr. 30/2022 idF BGBl. II Nr. 191/2023 (consolidated) (2023-06-24)
  2. RIS. Sektbezeichnungsverordnung § 3 (Sekt Austria Reserve), version in force from 24.06.2023 (2023-06-24)

Facts checked on 2026-10-19