schiller-wine: Austria

Saturday, September 26, 2026

24 Hours in Kufstein, Austria: Riedel Glas Manufaktur, Restaurant Alpenrose, Kufstein Fortress, Mazerat Wein.Wirt and Hotel Platzhirsch (September 2026)

24 Hours in Kufstein: Riedel Glas Manufaktur, Restaurant Alpenrose, Kufstein Fortress, Mazerat Wein.Wirt and Hotel Platzhirsch (September 2026)

Tour of the "Riedel Glas Manufaktur" in Kufstein, Austria

Jointly with Graydon Vandament American Wine Society and Cindy, Annette Schiller Ombiasy Public Relations and Wine Tours and I toured the Riedel Glass Manufacture in Kufstein Austria.

Riedel is a leading producer of high-end wine glasses.

Recently, at the initiative of @Graydon Vandament, Riedel got involved with the American Wine Society. Inter alia, Riedel will be a sponsor at the forthcoming Annual Conference of the @American Wine Society in @Jacksonville, Florida.

Riedel was originally established in 1756 in the Sudetenland, a German speaking part of Bohemia, but the family lost everything in the Second World War and engineered an astonishing rebirth in 1956 in Kufstein, Austria. Today, along with Zalto, Riedel is dominating the market for high-end wine glasses.

Riedel is a pioneer of grape-specific wine glasses. There is a large variety of different Riedel glasses, for different wine grapes and regions.

1% of Riedel's production is hand-made glasses and 99% is machine-made glasses. The entire production of hand-made glasses takes place in a relatively small facility in Kufstein, which we were able to tour with a guide. It was a fascinating experience.

In the absence of the 11-generation owner @Maximilan Riedel (on a sales trip to the Netherlands and Germany), we were welcomed by his Personal Assistant @Katharina Wolf.

See: Tour of the "Riedel Glas Manufaktur" in Kufstein, Austria

Lunch at Gault&Millaut-rated Restaurant Alpenrose with Grape-specific Riedel Wine Glasses - Before an Afternoon Visit of the "Riedel Glas Manufaktur" - in Kufstein, Austria

Alpenrose is a @Gault&Millau-listed restaurant (13.5 points), which follows the farm-to-table concept, with the products mainly coming from its own bio-farm Lindenhof.

Interestingly, we had a @Weingut Huber Gruener Veltliner in two different Riedel glasses. Riedel is a pioneer of grape-specific wine glasses.

The lunch was at the invitation of Riedel. Thank you very much.

See: Lunch at Gault&Millaut-rated Restaurant Alpenrose with Grape-specific Riedel Wine Glasses - Before an Afternoon Visit of the "Riedel Glas Manufaktur" - in Kufstein, Austria (September 2026)

One Night at Hotel Platzhirsch

We arrived the day before from Munich and stayed at Hotel Platzhirsch for the night.

The Altstadthotel Platzhirsch is a premium, family-managed boutique hotel located in the historic old town center of Kufstein, Austria. Reimagined from a 14th-century building, it blends deep historical architectural roots with modern, high-end comforts.

Tour of Kufstein Fortress

Upon arriving in Kufstein and checking in, we toured the impressive Kufstein Fortress.

The Kufstein Fortress is one of the most impressive Medioeval constructions in Tyrol: It rises on a hill above Kufstein. This fortress has already been built very early in order to control the entrance from the Alpine foothills into the Inntal valley. However, it has been mentioned for the first time in 1205 AD, when it was in possession of the Bishops of Regensburg. In the course of time, the complex has been expanded, and since 1924 it has been in possession of the town of Kufstein.

An Evening at Mazerat Wein.Wirt in Kufstein, Austria, a "Star Wine List" Wine Bar

We spent a wonderful evening at Mazerat Wine Bar, right in the center of old town Kufstein, close to our Hotel @Platzhirsch.

Mazerat Wine Bar is owned and run by Steiner Heribert and Julia Steiner. Herbert focuses on the wines and Julia on the food. The wine list is large and high-end, 50 pages, including 53 wines by the glass.

Wines are served in Riedel or Zalto glasses. All wines on the list are natural wines, i.e. made with an ecological mind-set. Similarly, the delicious homemade cold cuts are all from selected producers. I loved Julias Bauernbrot (traditional farmhouse bread).

No wonder Mazerat Wein.Wirt is on the @Star Wine List with other outstanding wine bars from around the world.

The warm weather allowed us to sit in the cosy outdoor terrace area. Thanks Heribert and Julia for a most entertaining and memorable evening.

See: An Evening at Mazerat Wein.Wirt in Kufstein, Austria, (Ahead of a Visit of the Riedel Glas Manufaktur), with Hosts Julia and Heribert Steiner, a "Star Wine List" Wine Bar (September 2026)

schiller-wine: Related Postings

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The 2025 American Wine Society National Conference in Chantilly/ Virginia/ USA, with Annette and Christian Schiller: Seen Through Christian Schiller's Camera Lens
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Thursday, September 24, 2026

Tour of the "Riedel Glas Manufaktur" in Kufstein, Austria (September 2026)

Jointly with Graydon Vandament American Wine Society and Cindy, Annette Schiller Ombiasy Public Relations and Wine Tours and I toured the Riedel Glass Manufacture in Kufstein Austria.

Riedel is a leading producer of high-end wine glasses.

Riedel is a pioneer of grape-specific wine glasses. There is a large variety of different Riedel glasses, for different wine grapes and regions.

In the absence of the 11-generation owner @Maximilan Riedel (on a sales trip to the Netherlands and Germany), we were welcomed by his Personal Assistant @Katharina Wolf.

Arriving