Traditionsweingüter Österreich, promotional organization of 17 growers in niederösterreich in austria that has developed a classification of selected and ostensibly superior vineyard sites under the rubric erste lage, pledging not to market wines dedicated to those sites prior to September following their harvest, a restraint rare in the context of Austria’s general fixation on young wine. The name simply means traditional wineries of Austria. In attempting to set an example of model vineyard classification, the Traditionsweingüter invites growers from outside its group to participate so that in theory all of the best sites will receive their due. Growers propose candidates both for Erste Lage status as well as for a much larger cast of merely Klassifizierte Lagen (classified sites), with promotion or demotion to be determined ultimately on the basis of blind tastings among the participants. Because their vinea wachau association pre-dates and is structured entirely differently from the Traditionsweingüter, growers in the wachau are not participants, initially anyway.
