German Wine Country in 3 Days - Day 3 (a yr. later - my bad.

With the first day of Fall behind us, I've found myself recollecting with fondness the trip I took last October to Germany. Then I remembered that I never finished posting about it. Details are a bit foggier at this point, but I think I can still manage the highlights of day 3. For those who might be interested in following from the beginning, days 1 & 2 are here: http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.ph ... ht=germany, http://www.lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.ph ... ht=germany.
Breakfast was served promptly at 7am - yet another elaborate spread w/ lots of breads, cheeses and my newly re-discovered favorite - warm soft-boiled eggs. The buffet was laid out in the same building that we had been partaking Bittburgers in the previous evening. I've got to hand it to Mrs. Linden. She was still serving a few patrons when I left the night before at 10pm, yet she had to have been up by 5am putting together our breakfast. And, she was smiling. I do recall there being a bit of drama when our group leader went to settle up our bill for the accommodations. He was quite surprised when she informed him that she did not accept credit cards. Now I mentioned in my previous post that the town of Ayl is a bit "sleepy." Try to find a bank, much less an open bank at 8am. I'm not exactly sure how he worked it out, but I think an ATM was eventually discovered.
This was the first morning that not all of the members of our group made it to breakfast. In fact, some of them almost missed the van's departure. Of those that seemed to be dragging a bit, the bulk of them had opted for the Federweisser cafe vs. the beer lodge. I was feeling pretty good about my choice to go with beer, especially as we noticed the van behind ours made a few unscheduled stops by the side of the road on the way to our first winery of the day.
Day 3 was slightly less ambitious than the previous two, with just two wineries on the agenda. First up was Fritz Allendorf, founded in 1955 and located in the heart of the Rheingau at Oestrich-Winkel. Of all the wines on the tour, these were the ones I was most familiar with prior to the trip. Husband and I were in the habit of ordering a bottle of the Classic Riesling at Katsu. (It has since disappeared from their list. ) Sam's and Binny's also both carry several of their wines. The winery itself really stood out from all the others we'd toured due to its modernity. Fritz's son and the whole family is really trying to bring their wines to a newer, younger market. If you just take a look at an Allendorf wine label and compare it to almost any other German riesling label you will see how he is breaking with tradition. Rumor has it that he's not all that popular in the area for some of his forward-thinking and marketing strategies. When you meet him he oozes enthusiasm and pride for his family's heritage and the legacy that he wants to see grow for the next generation of Allendorfs. They have a large tasting facility on site complete with gift shop. Sparkling reisling was passed upon our arrival. Next, we did a blind tasting of about 10 of their wines and were asked to guess the varietals. A prize was given to the person who got the most right. (Not me.) Afterwards we were all given a glass of their Classic Riesling and led to a small white walled room towards the back of the building. Mr. Allendorf, whose English is quite good by the way, led us through a series of colored light changes as we tasted the wine. The room started out pale green. As we sipped the wine people made tasting comments like "green apple," "tart," "grassy," etc... He changed the color of the room several times and the same wine seemed to change flavors as the colors did. Soft red = "berries," pale yellow="buttery," etc... Weird. When there was no color on the walls, just stark white, I swear the wine tasted like water.
We were then given a tour of the wine making facilities followed by lunch in the main house. Lunch at Allendorf's was probably my least favorite meal of the trip. Although they laid out a beautiful table, the food was not particularly memorable - a starter soup and a "meat & potatoes" entree. It seemed like their standard meal that they roll out for every tour bus that pulls in - not bad, but nothing special. Fortunately, I was still full from the big breakfast so lunch really wasn't important to me.
Back in the van, and off we went to Weisbaden. We checked into the Crowne Plaza which was very nice, clean and centrally located. I had about an hour to go off on my own to explore the city. I really could have used more time but it's probably a good thing I didn't have it - some serious damage would have been done to my credit card. If I ever return to Germany I would make an effort to go back to Weisbaden for at least a full day. I liked the "vibe" of the city - lot's of people strolling, multiple gourmet food shops, cafes, shops of all kinds, beautiful architecture, etc.... Alas, in an hour I only managed to buy an imitation pashmina and a wool hat. I'm sure that lack of time made my husband very happy.
Our second and final winery of the day was a short trip from Wiesbaden to the estate of August Kessler. Mr. Kessler happened to be in Miami promoting his wines at the time, so we were greeted by his wife and his cellar master, Max Himstedt. Mrs. Kessler was very warm and gracious, but she let Max do most of the talking as she lacked confidence in her English skills. The best way I can describe Max is this - think of someone you'd picture hanging out in a coffee house in Seattle during the height of the whole "Grunge" thing and you've probably got it about right. Except he was reasonably clean-shaven. Anyway, he was very laid back but extremely knowledable about his craft and he had a lot of stories. The Kessler estate was the polar opposite of what we had seen at Allendorf. Here it was all dust, must, and wood. As we came up from the cellars we stopped at a huge carved wooden door. Max opened it and we found ourselves in an amazing candle-lit tasting room. They had pushed some wood tables together to make a large dining table for us. In contrast to what we had seen below, this room was decorated with modern art and Frank Sinatra (?! - found out later he's a fav of Mr. Kessler,) was playing in the background. Turns out the art was all done by a young artist from Poland that lives and works with them on the estate. More on him in a second. We tasted about 10 wines throughout the course of dinner including the first red wines that impressed me on this trip. When Mrs. Kessler realized I did not eat red meat she was deeply concerned, much to my embarassment, and ran off to the kitchen. I hate it when that happens as I'm perfectly happy with bread and whatever vegetable happens to be on the plate. However, when she came back with one of the best Caprese salads I've ever had, I didn't mind so much. Where she got fantastically flavored ripe tomatoes, fresh, tangy mozzerella and what tasted like home-grown basil in Germany in October, I don't know. I was feeling pretty good, what with the wine, candlelite, Caprese, good conversation, Sinatra....thinking, "I am fully satisfied right now," when out comes my "entree" - a huge wedge of ripe aged cheese and a basket of warm bread! I passed it around the table and everyone agreed it was fabulous with the wine. It was at this point that the Polish artist-in-residence joined us for a glass of wine. Several of us were admiring his works and our tour leader was considering purchasing one of the larger paintings. Stretching my legs, I noticed a small piece leaning against a wall behind a chair. It caught my eye and I wound up purchasing it from him for $100. I knew my husband would like it too - it's hanging in our bedrooom and neither one of us has grown tired of looking at it. Ha! You don't give me time to spend money in Weisbaden - I'll still find a way!
A few beers in the Crowne Plaza bar, and off to sleep.
The Crowne Plaze puts on an elaborate breakfast buffet complete with -ooh -omelet station. Then, it was home to Chicago - after a few last beers in the Frankfort airport and a few bad movies on the plane.
So, if you find yourself hanging around on your deck, patio, balcony, or just sitting around your abode with the windows open this Fall on a crisp afternoon, consider popping open a bottle of Reisling and enjoying a glass. Cheese optional.