Weingut Gästezimmer Gruber

We escaped to this rural retreat on a couple of hot August days when we felt like getting out of Vienna. Living in Austria and understanding the culture, we were not expecting a hotel and we knew that the Weingut would be fairly isolated. We found the place on the major online booking agency but they had the location wrong and so we looked for the homepage for more details. We also found it was much cheaper to book direct. We were not disappointed. The presentation and garden are quite beautiful. There is also not much light pollution so we went out to star-gaze one night. This is a welcoming but busy farm and vineyard. At these prices they do not employ staff though they work hard to ensure the rooms are kept clean and well equiped and the breakfast perfectly adequate. We were offered boiled eggs and the cold buffet was fine. Wines are available on an "Honesty" system which seems to work and we enjoyed what was literally the "house wine" - and bought some to take home. The grounds are very pleasant and there is ample seating. There is a balcony to the breakfast room though it is cluttered and not especially comfortable - but a great place to enjoy the views. There is no air con of course but the attic rooms seem breezy and with only small windows do not get particularly hot. With the window open all day but closed as soon as we put the light on we were not troubled by insects at all. The bed was comfortable. The bathroom is fine with a modern shower, though it has a strange sensor light and fan which we could not seem to moderate. A simple on off switch would have been great! The Weingut offers wine tastings but no food - not even bread and cheese and it is a long way to the nearest Heurige or restaurant. We did "picnic" one day - but there is no fridge in the rooms and no communal one available for food in the breakfast room - which also curiously has no sink. So realistically you do have to go out which we found disappointing as we would have enjoyed lunching out and then a light cold supper with the house wines! Perhaps in the future they might make this a bit easier by providing a fridge; it's a small friendly place and I am sure a communal one would work. There is a taxi system for visits to the local hotels and heurige but we decided to drive, taking turns to stay on the wagon! It is not particularly challenging driving but they are dark narrow and undulating lanes - please watch for the frogs when driving up from Eherenhausen! Not all the local places open every day and since they are well spread out it is worth doing some research first and booking a table. It was very hot during out stay and therefore long walks were too much but the area is well provided withh good walking, which is well signed. We also visited local villages and explored a little of Slovenia which is only a few Km away. There are also many other famous wine providers nearby. Overall thoroughly recommended. I give it 4 stars because it doesn't pretend to be anything else - it isn't charging hotel prices and it can't offer hotel services. But in its class it is really five star! It delivers what it promises - and a bit more. I can't imagine anyone being disappointed.