The Austrian institute was founded in 1991 as a subsidiary of ÖWM (Österreichisches Weinmarketing-Service). It is open to all private wine enthusiasts and professional winegrowers with its own seminar and training programme. The institute is located in the municipality of Rust (Burgenland) in the atmospheric setting of the Seehof. After 36 years, Josef "Pepi" Schuller(MW) handed over the management of the Wine Academy in 2026 to Christian Zechmeister, previously Managing Director of Wein Burgenland, the Regional Wine Committee Burgenland and authorised signatory of Weintourismus Burgenland GmbH. Seminars are organised in all nine Austrian provinces in cooperation with wine-competent partners.
![]()
If I were to rate websites, you would deserve the highest rating. It is rare to come across websites that provide such a large amount of data and are still so intuitive to use. Respect for the lovingly researched and informatively prepared encyclopedia. Keep it up!
Lothar Lindner
Innsbruck