The visit of the Weingut Fürstlich Castell’sches Domänenamt in Castell, Franken, started with a vineyard tour, where we had a glass of a Weingut Fürstlich Castell’sches Domänenamt Sekt. We then toured the winemaking facilites, including the old wine cellar. We finished the tour with a tasting of Weingut Fürstlich Castell’sches Domänenamt wines.
General Manager and Winemaker Björn Probst hosted us.
Weingut Fürstlich Castell’sches Domänenamt
The Weingut Fürstlich Castell’sches Domänenamt is one of the oldest wine estates in Germany. 70 hectares of vines in seven vineyard sites – nearly all in sole ownership – form the core of the estate. The first mention of the vineyards Schlossberg, Hohnart, Reitsteig, and Trautberg is found in a document from 1266. The vineyards are all situated below the family’s ancestral home and are marked by the powerful gypsum marl soils of the Steigerwald’s slopes.
Over 40 percent of the vineyards are planted with Silvaner. The Castell family was instrumental in introducing the Silvaner grape – originally from an area that is now Slovenia – to Franken in 1659.
Owner: Ferdinand Fürst zu Castell-Castell
General Manager and Winemaker Björn Probst
VDP member since 1955
Bottle production: 450 000
Grape varieties: 40% Silvaner, 20% Müller-Thurgau, 8% Riesling, 8% Weißburgunder, 12% Other White and 12% Red
The House of Castell
The House of Castell is a German noble family of mediatised counts of the old Holy Roman Empire. The origins of the Castell family can be traced back to the year 1057. The Castell family was an influential force and reigned over a number of well-known places in Franconia. There are 2 lines, the Castell-Castell and Castell-Rüdenhausen family branches.
Faber-Castell is a sub-line of the Castell-Rüdenhausen branch. Through the marriage of Count Alexander of Castell-Rüdenhausen (1866–1928) with Ottilie Baroness von Faber from a well-known family of industrialists the branch of Faber-Castell was created in 1898.
Major components of the assets of the Castell family include: (1) Fürstlich Castell’sche Bank, Credit-Casse AG. This private bank was founded in 1774. It is the oldest private bank of Bayern. (2) Weingut Fürstlich Castell’sches Domänenamt. (3) A.W Faber-Castell – one of the world's largest manufacturers of pens, pencils, office and art supplies, as well as high-end writing instruments and luxury leather goods.
The Faber-Castell company was founded in 1761 in Stein near Nürnberg by cabinet maker Kaspar Faber (1730–84), and has remained in the Faber family for eight generations. It opened branches in New York (1849), London (1851), Paris (1855), and expanded to Vienna (1872) and St. Petersburg (1874). It opened a factory in Geroldsgrün and expanded internationally and launched new products under Kaspar Faber's ambitious great-grandson, Lothar (1817–96). In 1900, after the marriage of Lothar's granddaughter with a cadet of the Counts of Castell, the enterprise took the name of Faber-Castell.
Björn Probst
Björn Probst has been Managing Director and Winemaker since 2016. Before joining the Weingut Fürstlich Castell’sches Domänenamt(42), he was running the Weingut zu Weimar and the Weinhaus zu Weimar in Sachsen, owned by Prinz zur Lippe. Born in Cologne, he studied at the Geisenheim University.
The Wines
NV Fürstlich Castell'sche Domänenamt Pinot Sekt Brut
2015 Fürstlich Castell'sche Domänenamt Schloss Castell Müller-Thurgau trocken VDP.Gutswein
2016 Fürstlich Castell'sche Domänenamt Schloss Castell Silvaner trocken VDP.Gutswein
The ‘Schloss Castell’ line is made from Franconian grape varieties presented in the traditional Bocksbeutel: accentuated by fine violet or herbal aromatics, with a balanced note of minerals or fruit - always distinguishably Franconian.
2015 Fürstlich Castell'sche Domänenamt Kugelspiel Silvaner trocken VDP.Erste Lage
2015 Fürstlich Castell'sche Domänenamt Hohnart Riesling trocken VDP.Erste Lage
2015 Fürstlich Castell'sche Domänenamt Schlossberg Silvaner trocken GG VDP.Grosse Lage
2008 Fürstlich Castell'sche Domänenamt Schlossberg Silvaner trocken GG VDP.Grosse Lage
2006 Fürstlich Castell'sche Domänenamt Schlossberg Silvaner Beerenauslese VDP.Grosse Lage
Schlossberg is the top Castell vineyard.
Bye-bye
Thank you Björn for a memorable visit of Fürstlich Castell’sches Domänenamt in Castell
Postings: Germany-East Tour 2017 by ombiasy WineTours: Wine, Art, Culture and History (Published and Forthcoming Postings)
Germany-East Tour 2017 by ombiasy WineTours: Wine, Art, Culture and History
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