Johannes Zillinger

The Essentials - Current role: winemaker at Bioweingut Johannes Zillinger. - The winery is in Velm-Götzendorf, Austria. - Cellar work is defined by spontaneous fermentation, light filtration, and minimal sulfur used only at bottling. At Bioweingut Johannes Zillinger, the essential ideas are as important as the finished bottle. The winery’s location in Velm-Götzendorf, Austria, anchors the work in a specific landscape, while Johannes’s cellar methods lean toward subtlety rather than force. Spontaneous fermentation gives the wines room to unfold on their own terms, light filtration preserves their character with as little interference as possible, and minimal sulfur used only at bottling keeps the focus squarely on purity and expression. In this way, the cellar becomes less a place of control than a place of careful framing. That philosophy is also reflected in Johannes’s own words: The sentence feels almost like a working principle distilled to its essentials. He extends that idea beyond the glass, connecting the health of the vineyard to the broader environment in which it exists. Another of his guiding thoughts offers a more lyrical view of the same approach: “The most beautiful pictures are painted by nature; with low intervention winemaking in the cellar, we frame those artworks.” The image is vivid without being decorative for decoration’s sake, and it neatly captures the elegance of a method that seeks to reveal rather than overwrite.

Signature

Johannes's signature wines include NUMEN Riesling, NUMEN Grüner Veltliner, NUMEN Fumé Blanc, Revolution Pink Solera, and Revolution Red. Together, these wines sketch the contours of his style: the precision of NUMEN Riesling, the fresh clarity associated with NUMEN Grüner Veltliner, the textured intrigue of NUMEN Fumé Blanc, and the more layered, expressive energy suggested by Revolution Pink Solera and Revolution Red. Each name sits within the broader arc of Johannes’s winemaking identity, one that favors nuance, natural rhythm, and a steady hand. Rather than announcing itself loudly, his work invites attention through detail, balance, and the sense that something living has been carefully allowed to speak.