Where do you go to find the World's Best Riesling?? Well, to determine that we should go right to the source (of origin)... Germany! The first record of this white grape variety dates back to the 15th century (think, 1435 -ish) in the Rheingau region. Germany makes for the ideal spot for Riesling being that the grapes thrive in moderate to cooler environments, which in turn creates a high acidity and thus makes a great pairing with foods!
Now that I've given a 'cliff-notes' version of German Riesling, I'll make a long journey short in recounting my time in the Mosel. As my husband, in-laws and I drove from Düsseldorf to the wine valley, it was an immediate look of awe as we approached the foothills of the grape vines that stretched for miles along the river. With the blue skies and intermittent clouds lingering above, I could not wait to capture all the beauty through the wine glass. In fact, I didn't wait long because as soon as we checked into our hotel, Jugendstilhotel Bellevue, in the romantic city of Traben-Trarbach, I grabbed my camera, wineglasses and husband (he's kind enough to lug around my heavy camera bag) and made our first stop to pick up the infamous German Riesling.
From the excellent recommendation of the hotel, we journeyed up to Weingut Trossen for our chosen wine for the weekend. I decided on a bottle of the 2015 Finesse Riesling- feinherb, while my husband selected the 2015 Finesse Riesling, the sweeter version of mine. We were delighted to have met one of the family members owning the winery who then explained the wine to us and offered if we would like to go on a tasting the following day... (yes, please!). I must also mention that I bought a bottle of red wine for my photography visions. For that I chose the 2014 Dornfelder - feinherb.
(Side Note: In my blog next week, I'll explain the German wines a bit more!)
Now that we had our fine German wine, we were off to the hills! We made a short pass over the Mosel River and up to the ruins of Grevenburg Castle. Built in 1350 by Count Graf Johann III, it was sadly later destroyed by the French in 1734. The Western wall is the only part of the castle that still stands today. As unfortunate as that was, there is beauty that can be found in the ruins as the archways present the valley with the most picturesque views. I was unable to get close enough to what I coined, "The Windows of Wine Valley," so instead I took the wineglass photographs from the wall just beside it. The views were breathtaking and the wine was ever-so refreshing!
