The Hirtzberger family purchased its first vineyards in the village of Spitz at the end of the 19th century. The winery is located at the western end of Wachau – the coolest part, closest to the mountains. Franz Senior laid the foundations by identifying the best individual vineyard terraces and thus established Vinea Wachau (a local winegrowing association) along with some other big names in the region. Franz II, who has presided over the family's 20 hectares of terraces since 1983, introduced a strict goal – high-quality wines that drive the Hirtzberger vineyard to the very heart of Wachau's wine culture. Since 1988 (and for 24 years as president of Vinea Wachau), he has tried to convey his beliefs to other winemakers in the region. At the core of his philosophy is a natural approach to winegrowing and a careful understanding of the geological and climatic characteristics of his terraces.

The strict focus on quality in the vineyard includes short pruning, strict yield control, and strict selection during harvest. Hand-picked, with several passes to ensure that only grapes with the highest physiological ripeness are collected and processed, the must is fermented without any added sugar or other enhancements in steel tanks until the fermentation stops naturally. They are then left to age in traditional large oak barrels. Approximately 150,000 bottles of wine are produced each year. All wines can be consumed immediately, but in the "Smaragd" category, they can age for many years.