Stage 23 From the Glacier to the Wine, the southern route from Leutschach - Ratsch an der Weinstraße

From Leutschach, where not only viticulture but also growing hops plays an important role, which can be experienced at the Leutschach brewery, the route takes us along the Glanzer Hoftour slightly uphill to the Eory-Kogel with the largest grapes in the world. Excellent wine taverns and vineyards invite you to a stopover and also give insights into the art and craft of winegrowers on the most famous wine route in Austria, because here it is still possible to look behind the scenes in many places. At the Eory-Kogel we keep left and walk towards Sabathihof, where we keep to the right and continue along the Glanzer Hoftour. We soon  get over the Roßberg to the Germuth vineyard in the heart of the Glanzer Wine Route.

Directly along the border with Slovenia, identical to the Südalpenweg 03 [Southern Alpine Route], we continue on this stage of the  hiking route "From the Glacier to the Wine" to visit another beautiful piece of earth just south of Sulz on the wine route in the area of ​​the Dreisiebner vineyard. The border table is a table surrounded by seats right on the border between the two countries that was built for "border talks". The border table is intended as a meeting place for cultural exchange. In addition, the border table is a communication hub for art, culture and politics, but also is a place to stop for individuals, especially the resident population and holiday guests. After a last leisurely climb, one of the most popular photo opportunities in the Southern Styria Nature Park begins, the Herzerlstraße - a street section in the shape of a heart. Passing other wineries and wine taverns, hiking slightly downhill we soon come to our stage town of Ratsch an der Weinstraße before heading along the border with Slovenia to Ehrenhausen on the next day.