Following the visit of Weingut Georg Müller Stiftung in Hattenheim, we went to Kloster Eberbach. It is one of Europe's best-preserved and important medieval monasteries. Still a world-class winery today, the Eberbach Abbey is a former Cistercian monastery, founded in 1136 by Bernard of Clairvaux as the first Cistercian monastery on the eastern bank of the Rhine river. Its Romanesque and Gothic buildings are very impressive.
Our visit of Kloster Eberbach had several components.
(1) We started with lunch at the Kloster Eberbach tavern. (2) We then toured the abbey. (3)We drove a mile to the new winemaking facility of Kloster Eberbach, the Steinbergkeller, and visited the famous Steinberg Vineyard. (4) The visit of Kloster Eberbach ended with a guided tour of the Steinbergkeller, the new winery, including a tasting.
We met the Managing Director of the Staatsweingüter Kloster Eberbach and had a brief chat with him.
Lunch at Kloster Eberbach
We enjoyed a great lunch in the garden restaurant of the Kloster Eberbach Tavern. I had white asparagus with potatoes and sauce hollandaise.
Tour of Kloster Eberbach
After lunch we toured the abbey, including a visit of the old monk’s dormitory where every year the famous auction of premium German wines takes place. A very special treat was a peek into the treasure chamber, where century old wine bottles are still stored and where the movie “The Name of the Rose” with Sean Connery was filmed in 1986.
Tour of the Steinberg
Following the tour of Kloster Eberbach, we drove a mile to the new winemaking facility of Kloster Eberbach, the Steinbergkeller, and visited the famous Steinberg Vineyard.
The Steinberg is a 32.4 hectares (80 acres) wall-enclosed vineyard in walking distance of the Eberbach Abbey in the Rheingau. It is one of the most famous German vineyards.
The favorite site of the monks, they built a 4 meter (13ft) wall around the vineyard to keep out thieves. This and its Cistercian heritage give Steinberg a distinct similarity to the famed Clos De Vougeot in Bourgogne in neigbouring France. The name Steinberg is German for "stony hill" after Stein = stone and Berg = mountain or hill.
The Steinberg is one of handful single vineyard sites in Germany which for reasons of historical significance have dispensation from having to include a village name together with the vineyard's name, so the wines from the Steinberg are simply labelled Steinberger.
Chat with Hessische Staatsweingüter Kloster Eberbach Managing Director Dieter Greiner
The Hessische Staatsweingüter Kloster Eberbach
The Steinbergkeller is the new and central winemaking facility of the Hessische Staatsweingüter Kloster Eberbach. The total vineyard area of the Hessische Staatsweingüter Kloster Eberbachcomes to more than 200 hectares, of which 85% are planted with Riesling, 10% with Pinot Noir and 5% with other varieties. Owner is the Land Hessen.
Steinbergkeller
A few years ago, the Hessische Staatsweingüter Kloster Eberbach built a new winemaking facility and celler just outside the wall of Steinberg, the Steinbergkeller.
Tasting
During the tour of the Steinbergkeller, we tasted a 6 Hessische Staatsweingüter Kloster Eberbach wines.
Postings: Germany-North Tour 2017 by ombiasy WineTours: Quintessential German Riesling and the Northernmost Pinot Noir (Posted and Forthcoming)
Germany-North Tour 2017 by ombiasy WineTours: Quintessential German Riesling and the Northernmost Pinot Noir
Weingut Georg Müller Stiftung in Hattenheim, Rheingau: Cellar Tour, Art Tour, Tasting and Vineyard Tour with Winemaker Tim Lilienström - Germany-North Tour 2017 by ombiasy WineTours
Lunch and Tour at Kloster Eberbach and Tour and Tasting at Weingut Kloster Eberbach, Rheingau
Visit and Tasting at Weingut Schloss Vollrads (VDP) in Oestrich-Winkel, Rheingau
Vineyard tour, cellar tour and tasting at Weingut Leitz in Rüdesheim, Rheingau
Visit and tasting at Weingut Ratzenberger (VDP) in Bacharach, Mittelrhein, with Jochen Ratzenberger
Cruise on the Rhine River from Lorch to Boppard, Mittelrhein
Visit and tasting at Weingut Heymann-Lösenstein (VDP) in Winningen, Mosel, with Richard Löwenstein
Tasting Pinot Noir at Weingut Kreuzberg in Dernau, Ahr
Visit and tasting at Weingut Jean Stodten, in Rech, Ahr, with Alexander Stodten
Tasting at Weingut Markus Molitor in Haus Klosterberg, Mosel
Tasting and Vineyard Visit at Weingut Immich-Batterieberg in Enkirch, Mosel, with Gernot Kollmann
The Wines of the Berncasteler Doctor, Bernkastel-Kues in the Mosel Valley, Germany
Wining in Bernkastel-Kues in the Mosel Valley: Wine Tavern “Spitzhaeuschen”, Germany
Tasting and Vineyard Walk at Weingut Fritz Haag (VDP) in Brauneberg, Mosel, with Oliver Haag
Dinner at the 2 Michelin star restaurant Schanz in Piesport, Mosel
Schiller’s Favorite Wine Taverns in Trier, Germany
Visit and tasting at Weingut Maximin Grünhaus (VDP) in Mertersdorf, Ruwer, Mosel, with Dr. Carl von Schubert
Visit and tasting at Weingut von Hövel (VDP) in Oberemmel, Saar, Mosel, with Max von Kunow
Tasting at Weingut Emrich-Schoenleber (VDP) in Monzingen, Nahe, with Frank Schönleber
Wine-pairing Lunch at Landgasthof Zur Traube in Meddersheim, Nahe, with Petra Hexamer and the wines of Weingut Hexamer.
Dinner with Wine Pairing the Restaurant of Weingut Kruger-Rumpf in Münster-Sarmsheim, Nahe, with Corenlia, Stefan and Georg Rumpf
Tasting at Weingut J.B. Becker, in Walluf, Rheingau, with Hajo Becker
Lunch at Gutsausschank-Ristorante Weingut von Oetinger in Erbach, Rheingau