Wine estate near Dresden

The wine estate

As a family we have been running an eco-friendly winemaking system on our estate in Radebeul for more than 40 years. Our wines are usually hand-picked and processed late in the season, but declared as a Landwein (German equivalent of the vin de pays). For years we have been selling it successfully on the market and are pleased to be able to add to the range of Saxon wines. Both this fact and our own experience that even the smaller wine-growing regions can be highly attractive to holidaymakers and tourists are connected to our aim of preserving the Elbe Valley's cultivated landscape, which has been shaped by vineyards.

The vineyard

Our hillside vineyard has roughly 1 ha of land planted with Weißburgunder (Pinot blanc), Spätburgunder (Pinot noir), Grauburgunder (Pinot gris), Kerner, Traminer and Riesling grapes. We regularly work the soil, sometimes by mechanical means but often by hand, especially under the grapevines, planting grass between the rows to improve the humus and nutrient supply to the vines. Apart from this, other steps we take as a matter of course are rigorous shoot thinning to control yield and improve quality, and pest control which protects beneficial insects.

The vintage

The annual highlight is harvesting the grapes with close and casual friends; the date of the harvest is chosen for each grape variety depending on its sugar and acid content, the state of the grapes and the weather. After the harvest and grape crushing there is usually time for all the helpers to build up their strength by feasting on hearty food and wine at a table with cheerful autumn decorations.

The hand-picked grapes are vinified at our own winery, in stainless steel tanks and/or barriques.