It's our last day in Germany and we spend it in the Franken region visiting a real array of wineries: a small family producer, a large family winery and a co-op; along the way there's lunch and dinner and a "wine shop and tourist info center" all wrapped in one. Here is the pictorial evidence ...
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| Breakfast room at the hotel Meintzinger where the internet is spotty - we confer in this room that the promised internet is a nightmare to get, if you get it at all |
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| Meintzinger ia also a Weingut, winery, where they make some Big wine - though we never any of their wines. |
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| I told you yesterday we were staying in Frickenhausen and here's the proof - we English speakers on the trip (read: North Americans) got a big kick out of this town's name. |
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| Arriving at Weingut Bickel Stumpf - right next door to the hotel |
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| A family run winery by the brother sister team of Melanie (in pink) and brother Mattias (in black) Stumpf - you can see the arm of their father in the right hand corner in the beige shirt. |
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| And who can forget Willy, who stole the show our whole visit - as you will see. |
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| They have 12.5 hectares on 2 sites that are 40km apart ... we walk through town to the closest one. |
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| Through the city gates ... |
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| And up this cobble stoned hill (street) |
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| When we got to the vineyard Willy did a little digging (stay tuned for more). |
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| View from the vineyard of the Fricken' village (Frickenhausen) and surrounding area beyond. |
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| Mattias in the vineyard |
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| The vineyard itself |
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| And Willy puts on a show: seems every time a cork is opened in his presence |
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| He goes ... |
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| Nuts ... you can't see it here, but he was jumping as high as the "old man's" shoulder (this is dad whose arm you saw earlier - he changed shirts) |
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| Which is why they are moving to screw-caps ... These are two 2011 Silvaners from two different pickings: Muschelkalk is the bocksbeutel (forward) and Kapellenberg (2nd harvest - Premier Cru) in the Burgundy bottle. |
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| 2011 Kapellenberg is richer, creamier and fuller with lemon peel, meringue and green apple notes (*** 1/2). |
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| Meanwhile Willy finds a stick to run around and play with |
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| 2011 Gemischer Satz (field blend) up to 10 grapes: Silvaner, Riesling, Yellow and Red Muscatella, Traminer and Elping - this is one interesting wine grown on 0.2 hectares of land in one vineyard all harvested at the same time (planted in 2007) - tropical notes with lime and quince - decent acidity brought on by some under-ripe grapes in the blend (*** 1/2+) |
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| Mattias shows us the slope of the vineyard |
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| Meanwhile (again) Willy, not to be outdone, meets another dog on the road. |
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| Which kinda gets him into the proverbial dog-house with Melanie. |
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| Back at the winery we try this 2005 'vom rot Hugl' Rotwein, a blend of 4 red grapes: Pinot Noir, Lemberger, Cabernet Dorsa and Portuguesa: dark fruit, anise, white pepper and sour cherry (*** 1/2+). |
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| "We are making stone wines", says Melanie, meaning terroir driven wines, which contain lots of mineral notes. |
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| Leaving the Stumpfs we travel to Hans Wirsching winery |
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| The first impression when you walk in the door at Wirsching, renovations were completed a few years ago. |
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| Andrea Wirsching takes us on a tour of the barrel rooms |
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| The Old ... |
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| and the new. |
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| Our walk around wines was a slightly sweet 2011 Iphofer julius-Echter-Berg Scheurebe: hint of mineral with peach sweetness; very pretty on the palate with grapefruit cocktail thru the mouth that lingers nicely (*** 1/2). |
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| The "Schatz Kammer" or treasure room ... we would call it a back vintage cellar. |
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| Inside the Treasure Room |
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| Our tastings were a set of comparative tastings showing current and back vintage wines - here the 2011 ruled with opulent fruit, hint of minerlity and balancing citrus. |
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| These Rieslings from 2008 and 2011 each had merit in their own right. Made from their older vines planted between 1968-1969. |
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| Grosses Gewachs Silvaners from 2010 and 2004 ... the 2004 showed what this wine can do with time in bottle - it's elegant, pretty and mouth-filling with a long finish. |
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| 2006 Iphofer Kronsberg Silvaner Trockenbeernauslese: honeyed and succulent with spice, apricot, per, hint of lime on the finish ... clings to the cheeks with delectable sweetness ... also has a beautiful golden colour (****+). |
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| Lunch is served |
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| Wonderful Silvaner soup |
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| Pork and Potatoes |
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| After lunch a stop at Vinothek Iphofan where tourist info is available on surrounding area wineris |
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| They represent 21 wineries - wines for sale as well as some local products |
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| As well as education on wines - including barrel sizes |
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| 600 square feet on 4 floors located in an old remodeled (on the inside) heritage building from 1724 |
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| It's also the place where the infamous "internet bait and switch" event of 2012 occurred ... when you see me ask me about it. |
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| Leaving the Vinothek we see the best license plate we've seen out whole trip ... what would make this even better is if the number was raised by one. |
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| Look closely ... this is the little known patron saint of nose-pickers: Fritz Flickenpick. |
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| Arrival at the co-op winery Winzer Sommerach |
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| Our group meets on the outside patio ... |
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| For some frizzant made from Pinot Noir, Domina and Schwarz Riesling (Black Riesling, better known as Pinot Meunier) |
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| This is a real educational facility, down to the floor, where they have glassed in the soil types of the Franken region, from the soily |
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| To the rocky. |
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| Then it was off to the classroom |
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| Where Daniela instructs us on the oldest co-op in Franken, started in 1901 with 15 families, today they have 90 families, 190 hectares, making 1.4 million bottles under 66 different labels -they also do custom crush. |
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| 2011 E1Ns Weissburgunder (Pinot Blanc): banana ship, pear, creamy vanilla, with sweet fruit on the palate and some spiced notes with a long finish of sweet banana and vanilla caramel. (*** 1/2+) |
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| 2009 E1NS Experiment W - the workers wine (the staff had a hand in making it): a wild ferment Kerner oaked aged for 9 months - sweet oak, caramel and poached pear with a whooping 15% alcohol (****) - Kerner is a Riesling / Trollinger cross. |
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| A trip to the cellar includes the big barrels |
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| And the little barriques |
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| In the cellar we tried the 2009 Cuvee Cabernet: 3 Cabernet blend - Mitos, Dorsa and Cubin - dark spiced fruit, anise, hickory and cedar, very toasty (*** 1/2). |
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| Dinner at the White Lamb was rather disappointing for a last meal - not as bad as yesterday's lunch, but close |
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| more white asparagus |
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| a simple salad |
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| Pork shoulder with "potato lump", better known in our circle as "the glue ball" |
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| Puff pastry with strawberry cream and kiwi-vanilla ice cream. |
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| Saying goodbye to the Lamm and to Germany. |
Well that about does it - the next day I was on a plane back home ... lots to know about Germany and her wines and her wine laws, which are some of the most complicated in the world - feel I have just scratched the surface here but it was a great immersion and introduction.
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