At the Erlenwein estate and winery in the Southern Palatinate

The up-and-coming 150-year-old 18-hectare estate Erlenwein in the South Palatinate is located in the middle of the vines between the villages Ilbesheim and Leinsweiler. In terms of varieties, Riesling is in the foreground, followed by the Burgundy series Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc supplemented by other varieties such as Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc. Timo Erlenwein: "For the wines from the best sites, I rely on spontaneous fermentation and let the wines mature in wooden barrels, including the good Rieslings. They won't be bottled until a year." Timo is particularly proud of the Kirchholz site, where the best red wines are growing, and which was mentioned in a document as early as 1238, even though it is (unfortunately) not entered in the register of sites to this day.

On top of that, the family has been running a distillery for four generations, where mirabelle plum, Williams-Christ pear or quince brandies are produced. Marc and wine are also refined into high-proof spirits and their own gin is distilled with the estate's own Palatinate kiwi flowers.

Very interesting to visit the surrounding

The surrounding area also has a lot to offer: numerous picturesque wine villages, such as the famous Deidesheim, or St. Martin, as well as the Hambach Castle with its museum, which is very important in the history of German democracy, or the Speyer Imperial Cathedral.

Text: Dieter Simon. Photos estate Erlenwein: PR, otherwies as specified