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Travelers from all around the world come to Germany’s southern wine regions to experience fine wines, delicious food and the beautiful countryside – and the KMC is right in the middle of it all. Germany produces two-thirds of the world’s Riesling and is home to the famous Mosel Riesling, according to the Deutsche Wein Institute. Germany is also the third largest producer of Pinot Noir, a full bodied red wine.
The KMC is within an hour’s drive of four of Germany’s most renowned wine regions: The Mosel, Rhineland-Pfalz, Rhineland Hessen and Rheingau, said Michel Städter, Chat Sauvage Winery general manager.
Further north than most wine growing countries, German wines are uniquely refreshing and aromatic, according to a video on the Deutsche Weine Insitute Web site.
The video, which was provided by the Wine and Spirit Education Trust, also mentioned that the longer growing season allows the grapes to maintain a fruity acidity and natural sugars.
The German Wine Institute’s Web site, www.deutscheweine.de, is a great resource to learn about the country’s wine regions, festivals, visitor-friendly wineries, grape varieties and more.
With a lively atmosphere and affordable prices, wine festivals (weinfest or winzerfest) are a great way to taste and learn about new wines while enjoying German culture. These festivals take place throughout the summer, and some regions will have festivals during and after the harvesting season, which takes place from September to October. In fact, with so many festivals in the area, one could visit a different festival every weekend throughout the summer.
Determining which festivals to attend is also an easy task. First, visitors need to determine which wine region they are interested in seeing. Visitors should base their decision on things such as time of travel, weather and the characteristics of the wines in that region. The Wine Institute Web site is a one-stop-shop for any information about wine or local wine festivals. However, Germans native to the Pfalz region will say visitors need to look no further than the Deutsche Weinstrasse.
At the Edenkoben Winzerfest, Mackenbach locals Steffi and Michael Ender said they were loyal Pfalz wine drinkers and go to the Pfalz weinfests every year.
“We have a saying in Germany: ‘Wein ist für die Seele, Bier ist für den Kopf,’” Mrs. Ender said. For all of us English speakers, that means, “Wine is for the soul, and beer is for the heart.”
For the more serious wine drinkers, one can also go directly to the winery to taste the wines. Most wineries welcome walk-ins and wine tasting is often free. Most Germans will come to the winery after having a meal out or eating in the restaurant to taste the wine and bring a bottle home, said Mathias Scheidweiler, Schamari-Muehle winery vineyard manager.
No matter which region one visits, wine tasting is a German experience that shouldn’t be missed.
For more information on Weinstrasse festivals taking place this year, visit www.deutsche-wein-strasse.de/.
