Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Europe
345
Schloss Vollrads
Kaiser Riesling
The Rheingau, Germany
The wide, majestic Rhine flows for 1,000km
(620 miles) north through the heart of
Europe, starting in the Swiss Alps and
skirting the borders of Austria, Germany,
France, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands.
Within Germany it runs into the dark for-
ested summits of the Taunus mountain
range, takes a sharp turn, and continues
west for 30km (18 miles) before resuming
its flow northward toward the North Sea.
On the map it looks like a brief kink in the
river's course—but this accidental diver-
sion creates a tiny wine region, the Rhein-
gau, that is regarded as one of Germany's
best. Sunny south-facing vineyards gently
ascend toward the thickly wooded north-
ern slopes; the area is dotted with castles,
fortresses, and villages, with a network of
footpaths and cycle trails that make it a
wine wanderer's paradise.
The Rheingau is the homeland of Ger-
many's noblest grape, Riesling. Often
regarded as the Cinderella of white grapes
(with Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc
playing the ugly but more favored stepsis-
ters), Riesling turns into a pure, fresh wine
with very German characteristics: blond-
ness, iron minerality, and sharp acidity.
Often regarded as the wine-lover's favor-
ite white, Riesling has gained an obsessive
cult following around the world, only now
becoming more generally fashionable.
Some call it the new “It” wine—and if so,
its favorite catwalk is the winery Schloss
Vollrads.
Schloss Vollrads claims to be the oldest
winery in the world, with vineyard deeds
that date from 850 and wine sales first
recorded in 1211. It is regarded as a Ger-
man national treasure, and it's easy to
understand why. The sprawling estate is
home to magnificent mansions with his-
toric towers; one castlelike manor is even
surrounded by a romantic moat and only
accessible by bridge. (With typical German
understatement, Goethe described its
grandiose 14th-century tower as “interest-
ing.”) The gateway and farm buildings are
adorned with armorial designs; the pala-
tial cavalier's house has sumptuous interi-
ors with baroque flourishes; the cellar
holds bottles dating from 1857.
Schloss Vollrads produces 100% Ries-
ling—this grape is unsuitable for blending
with others and is best left alone. It also
rarely comes with oak, as the wood would
only mask its startling freshness. Yet with
its racy acidity, it can be aged for up to 10
years or more. The best Riesling attains a
weird faint aroma of gasoline and diesel as
it ages, but the taste is sublime.
Schloss Vollrads's on-site restaurant,
Guts (an unappetizing name in English, but
in German
gut
means “good”), has a lovely
terrace overlooking the ample, manicured
grounds and a three-story glass structure
called the Orangerie. Here you can try
exquisite German cuisine accompanied by
the estate's famous Riesling—the dry,
sweet Cinderella wine that's the new “It.”
Schloss Vollrads,
Oestrich-Winkel
(
&
49/6723/660;
www.schlossvollrads.de).
(
Frankfurt (54km/33 miles).
L
$$
Akzent Waldhotel Rheingau,
Marienthaler Str. 20, Geisenheim-Marien-
thal (
&
49/6722/99600;
www.waldhotel-
gietz.de). $$
Zum Baeren Restaurant &
Hotel,
Hohnerstrasse 25, Trossingen (
&
49/
7425/6007;
www.trossingenhotelbaeren.
de).
