Der Rebenhof

Der Rebenhof is a 9.5-hectare estate in Südsteiermark, Austria, located along the border with Slovenia. The property has been in the Aubell family since Hartmut's great-grandfather Ludwig Kempl entered the business in 1924, though no one produced bottled wine until Hartmut Aubell took sole responsibility for the estate in 2008. He is the first generation of his family to make wine rather than simply grow grapes.

Aubell farms two main vineyard sites: the Witscheiner Herrenberg, with soils of sand, gravel, and silt, and the Ratscher Nussberg, dominated by Opok (grey calcareous marl). Both are steep sites requiring handwork. He has farmed organically and without additions from the outset, moved to biodynamic methods in 2013, and obtained Demeter certification in 2016. Grape varieties grown include Welschriesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Morillon, Gelber Muskateller, Weissburgunder, and Zweigelt.

Aubell is known for non-interventionist winemaking: no selected yeasts, no enzymes, no fining agents, and no filtration. He works with an array of custom aging vessels including hermetically sealed Austrian milk tins and custom Stockinger fuder barrels with staves of varying thickness, cycling wines through four to six stages of aging before release. Vintages are released when Aubell considers the wines ready rather than on a fixed commercial calendar. He is also one of the few Austrian producers working with carbonic maceration for white wines.