Markus Huber: Austria’s Perfect 100-Point Winemaker

Perfect 100-point scores are rare enough in the wine world, even more so when you’re a boutique artisanal winemaker from Austria's smallest DAC. Markus Huber has done the unthinkable, putting Traisental on the map with precision, purity, and exceptional value.

Introducing Markus Huber

Markus Huber grew up in the vineyard, getting dirt under his fingernails long before becoming the tenth generation to run Weingut Huber in 2000 at the tender age of 21. After cutting his teeth working the harvest in South Africa, he came back to his homeland with new ideas and a fresh approach. This included converting all vineyards to organic agriculture, reducing yields, and practising minimal intervention in the winery with stainless steel and neutral wood rather than heavy oak. 

Under his careful guardianship, the estate has expanded from a modest 4-hectare holding to over 50 hectares in many of Traisental’s most prized sites. These include his Ried Berg and Alte Setzen plots which have the Erste Lage designation, Austria’s highest quality classificaiton. The Berg plot in particular, planted on steep terraces, has earned Markus two perfect 100-point scores and the accolade of “Winemaker of the Year” from the prestigious German-language wine magazine Falstaff.

Austria’s Traisental Region

Often overshadowed by Wachau, Kamptal and Kremstal, Traisental is Austria’s smallest and youngest DAC. It’s located west of Vienna and gets its name and character from the Traisen river that flows from the Alps. The terroir here is blessed with limestone-rich soils and a cool continental climate which naturally suits Austria's iconic Grüner Veltliner and Riesling. 

Cool summer nights and complex soils formed from the ancient sea that once covered eastern Austria help create crisp, structured white wines with an almost chalky, saline minerality. Markus Huber’s gentle touch in the winery elevates this natural beauty, using organic farming and a focus on single vineyard bottlings to showcase the elegance of the terroir.

Why Do Markus Huber’s Wines Get 100-Point Ratings?

So far Markus Huber winery has had two perfect 100-point scores, with many more wines hitting the high 90s:

• Riesling Traisental Berg EL 2023: This sublime Riesling hit the headlines in 2024 with a perfect 100-point score from James Suckling. 

• Grüner Veltliner Traisental Berg EL 2024: A year later his Grüner Veltliner picked up another 100-point score from Suckling. Suckling’s team also picked it as his No. 11 World Wine for 2025, describing it as “a miraculous white that is both superlight and astonishingly concentrated, proving the greatness of the grape and its terroir”.

• Grüner Veltliner Berg EL 2023: The previous vintage also picked up a 99 point score from James Suckling, demonstrating Markus’s continual commitment to improving his wines with every vintage.

It’s rare enough for established producers to create 100-point wines, and even more so for boutique Austrian producers. Credit goes to Markus Huber’s exceptional attention to detail and laser focus on terroir which carries through into the glass. Markus maintains that great wine is made in the vineyard, not corrected in the winery. That’s why he farms and harvests each tiny parcel individually, personalizing his winemaking strategy to the vintage and the individual character of that specific site.

Must-Try Markus Huber Wines

Riesling Ried Berg Erste Lage

This now iconic Riesling is the bottle that first made Markus Huber a global wine sensation. Grapes are carefully harvested by hand with multiple passes through the vineyard and meticulous selection to ensure only the best are used for this bottling. Once in the winery Markus ferments in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks to preserve purity and aromatics, followed by some ageing on the fine lees for greater complexity and balance.

Grüner Veltliner Ried Berg Erste Lage

The sister wine to Markus’s top tier Riesling is this impressive Grüner Veltliner from the same vineyard. These are 60-year old vines which naturally have deep roots that penetrate through the limestone and calcareous marl and deliver lower yields and greater flavor concentration in the fruit. Grapes are treated in a similar way to Markus’s top Riesling, with stainless steel tanks and maturation on fine lees for a short period.

Grüner Veltliner Terrassen

This Grüner Veltliner offers a great introduction to the Huber style at a more modest price tag. It’s made in a fresh, vibrant style with serious minerality and complexity despite the accessibility, since Markus believes in practising premium winemaking techniques across his range. Grapes are organically grown on multiple steep terraced sites across Traisental, capturing a snapshot of the region at large. These are typically younger vines and higher yields compared to his Erste Lage bottlings. Fermentation again takes place in neutral stainless steel with brief ageing on the fine lees to preserve purity of the fruit.

Riesling Terrassen

This is the Riesling version of Markus’s everyday Grüner Veltliner, sourced from terraced sites across the region. Riesling is more sensitive to over-ripening, so the winemaker uses careful selection and several manual passes through the vineyards to get top quality fruit. It’s a great value wine that showcases the best of young Traisental Riesling for everyday enjoyment.

Markus Huber and the Future of Austrian Wine

Markus Huber is part of a whole new generation of pioneering winemakers who aren’t afraid to break with tradition and try something different. His work in Traisental has become a reference point for what small Austrian producers are capable of, without any fanfare or deep pockets. His laser-focused Rieslings and Gruner Veltliners have resonated with collectors and wine enthusiasts around the planet who are thirsty for the next big thing.

Other up-and-coming Austrian winemakers riding the wave with Markus include Tom Dockner, Bioweingut Viktor Fischer, and Weingut Ludwig Neumayer who are also working in Traisental. Patrick Proidl in Kremstal is putting his own twist on refined Riesling from steep terraced sites similar to the Huber family’s, while Bründlmayer in Kamptal is building a reputation for single vineyard whites and sekt (sparkling wine). 

If you haven’t yet tried Austria’s premier Rieslings and Grüner Veltliner, this is an opportunity to experience them before they become mainstream!