Baden: Greetings from the Kraichgau

Baden

"Greetings from the Kraichgau," wrote Claus Burmeister, the general manager and winemaker of two fine Baden estates: Burg Ravensburg and Heitlinger. His salutation, specifying the Kraichgau, one of Baden's nine Bereiche (districts), made me smile. Bereiche are administrative divisions of Germany's thirteen Weinbaugebiete (wine regions) and can technically appear on wine labels. German wine law identifies forty-one Bereiche, and in theory, these large geographic areas should present a particular flavor profile. Only a few German wine experts could distinguish Nierstein from Bingen or Wonnegau (Rheinhessen's three Bereiche), and Bereich names rarely appear on labels in export markets like the United States.

On the other hand, Baden is a sprawling region, the third-largest in Germany, with 15,522 hectares, and the Bereich and Großlagen names have historical usage. The use of larger place names is understandable given the region's size. The holdings of its growers also contribute to the structure of Baden's wine business. Around 20,000 growers own an average of 0.6 hectares per grower, and looking after the vines is often a part-time affair. Most of these weekend winegrowers belong to the 100 cooperatives that produce and market about 85% of Baden's wine. The geography of Baden covers a latitude of over 400 kilometers. The soil, climate and terrain of Tauberfranken in the north has little similarity to Bodensee in the south. 

This leads us back to Kraichgau, a Bereich lying roughly between Heidelberg to Baden-Baden, and is an excellent example of Baden's diversity. The chalky-loess soil with pockets of marl and shale limestone make this an ideal district for Burgundian varieties, with Auxerrois, Weißburgunder, and Spätburgunder standing out as local specialties. Visit another of Baden's nine districts, and you’ll encounter volcanic soil, granite, or gneiss. Geologically speaking, Baden is complex, not unlike the Alsace region of France directly across the Rhine. Then there’s Baden’s range of grape varieties. Spätburgunder (Pinot Noir) from Kaiserstuhl might be Baden's current calling card, but an abundance of grape varieties like Gutedel (Chasselas), Grauburgunder (Pinot Gris), and Riesling excel in Germany's warmest and sun-spoilt wine region.

Tauberfranken

Tauberfranken (known as Badische Frankenland until 1992) is the northernmost of Baden’s nine Bereiche, taking its name from the Tauber River, which flows through the wine regions of Franken, Württemberg, and Baden, before meeting the Main River in Wertheim. Wertheim am Main is about an hour’s drive west of Würzburg, and like the wines of the Franken region, Tauberfranken is bottled in the traditional Bocksbeutel. Tauberfranken’s 604 hectares of vines are on rolling hills and consist of sandstone and Muschelkalk. The cooler climate and calcareous soil benefits Müller-Thurgau and Schwarzriesling (Pinot Meunier), the district’s focus varieties. Müller-Thurgau is typically dry and mineral in style, while Schwarzriesling is vinified as red wine and is fruity and spicy. Frank Schoonmaker wrote in his classic reference, ‘The Wines of Germany’ (revised edition 1980): “The communities where the best wines grow are Königheim, Beckstein, and Königshofen. The center of the wine trade is Tauberbischofsheim.”

Badische Bergstraße

“Here Germany begins to become Italy,” said Emperor Joseph II in 1764. The marketing arm of Badischer Wein notes that the climate of Badische Bergstraße is the Mediterranean, evidenced by the blooming garden of cherry, peach, and almond trees interspersed among the vineyards. This small district of just 385 hectares immediately borders Heidelberg. On a map, Bereich Badische Bergstraße looks to be a continuation along the Odenwald of Weinbaugebiet Hessische Bergstraße. The separation is probably due to the Bereich being in Baden-Württemberg while the Weinbaugebiet is in the state of Hesse. The Oden Forest offers protection from cold easterly winds. The area is blessed with abundant sunshine, allowing Pinot Noir and Riesling to achieve full-body and intense flavors on deep loess, loam, and weathered porphyry, granite, gneiss, and red sandstone. It’s curious then that Ian Jamieson wrote of the region in his 1991 book entitled German Wines: “the style of the wines is northerly. They have more acidity and are generally lighter in alcohol than those of south Baden.”

Kraichgau

The Kraichgau is a hilly district of 1,155 hectares lying roughly between Heidelberg and Baden-Baden. It is an excellent example of Baden’s soil diversity with its chalky-loess soil over colored sandstone and pockets of Keuper (marl) and Muschelkalk (shale limestone), ideally suited for Burgundian varieties. This is in contrast to the granitic soils of Ortenau directly south. Auxerrois is a local specialty, and while Schwarzriesling (Pinot Meunier) once played a role here, it has been replaced in favor of Spätburgunder. The village of Malsch lays claim to some of Kraichgau’s best Weißburgunder and Spätburgunder, while Riesling is excellent and full-bodied from the stonier soils of Sulzfeld. With its rocky outcrop and old castle, the historic Burg Ravensburg in Sulzfeld has long been a standard-bearer for quality in the Kraichgau. I’ve also tasted excellent examples of Kraichgau  Chardonnay from limestone soils at Heitlinger’s Heinberg VDP.Grosse Lage in Östringen and Klumpp's Kirchberg vineyard in Bruchsal.

Ortenau

The district between Baden-Baden and Offenburg is the Ortenau, with 2,705 hectares of vineyards. Granitic soils, relatively high rainfall, and the pine trees of the Black Forest define the area. Spätburgunder is the leading variety with 47% of total plantings, followed by Riesling at 25%. Riesling is especially interesting in this Bereich and is the dominant variety in the Rebland, a 300-hectare subregion near Baden-Baden. Klingelberger is a regional synonym for Riesling (coming from Schloss Klingelberg) and Schloss Neuweier’s Mauerberg is planted exclusively to Riesling. The village of Durbach, with its surrounding steep slopes, is primarily known for its racy dry Riesling and Traminer. Andreas Laible is one of the finest Riesling producers in Durbach.

The villages of Sasbachwalden, with its Alder Gott vineyard, and Waldum are known for their Spätburgunder. At Bühl, Spätburgunder is a significant variety, and Jacob Duijin is a reference point for quality. The Affentaler Winzergenossenschaft (co-op) produces wine from Spätburgunder packaged in a bottle with a monkey as its label. The Cistercians planted Pinot Noir here over 700 years ago, and cries of Ave Maria led to Ave Tal (Ave Valley) and later to Affental, so the story goes. Since we're speaking of bottles, four villages in Ortenau have the right to the Bocksbeutel. A Buddel, a variation on the Bocksbeutel, was intended to symbolize regional quality in the past. Weißherbst is a rosé produced entirely from Pinot Noir.

Breisgau 

Breisgau is the district near Freiburg, the capital of the Black Forest. Northeast of Kaiserstuhl-Tuniberg is the old city on the Rhine called Breisach, which confusingly is not in the Bereich Breisgau, but in Kaiserstuhl and home to the Badische Winzerkeller mega-cooperative. Breisgau’s 1,592 hectares grow at a 200-300 meters height asl on mainly loess and loam soils. In the micro-climate of the Gottertal, they reach up to 500 meters. Spätburgunder is the main variety but Grauburgunder, Weißburgunder, and Müller-Thurgau are also important. In ‘The Wines of Germany’ (revised edition 1980), Frank Schoonmaker wrote that “Müller-Thurgau is fruity and somewhat heavier here. It is fairly dry, with less acidity.” Despite Müller-Thurgau’s looming presence, Muschelkalk provides the opportunity to produce some of Baden’s finest Spätburgunders, and several outstanding producers, including Bernhard Huber, Shelter, and Enderle & Moll, are all based here. In Glottertal, Pinot Noir is vinified as Weissherbst.

Kaiserstuhl

From the American wine trade perspective, Kaiserstuhl Spätburgunder is Baden’s calling card. As I learned from Dr. Rainer Amann of the Staatliches Weinbauinstitut in Freiburg, Kaiserstuhl’s notoriety as one of Germany’s best Spätburgunder areas is relatively recent, and the stump of this extinct volcano is still planted mainly to white varieties. Kaiserstuhl, “the Emperor’s chair” due to its horseshoe shape, comes from a fable with a German emperor holding court in the innermost reaches of the mountain. The löss, up to 20 meters deep in some areas, helps explain the proportion of white varieties of this large 4,149 hectare Bereich.

With the help of explosives, the Ihringer Winklerberg was created between 1842 and 1844 and the new vineyard was planted with Rheingau Riesling, Deidesheimer Tramier, and Spätburgunder from Clos de Vougeot. The Totenkopf (skull and crossbones) is the highest point of the Kaiserstuhl and rises to 557 meters. You can see some of Baden’s best wine villages, including Achkarren, Bickensohl (both famous for Grauburgunder), Bischoffingen, and Burkheim. Then you have Oberbergen, home of the famous wine list of Restaurant Schwarzer Adler, Obberotweil, and Ihringen.

Kaiserstuhl’s climate makes it the warmest wine region in Germany. Part of its myth is that volcanic soils rich in minerals lend a fiery taste to the wines, although I find most of the leading producers strive for elegance and nuance. Fiery or not, the wines are fully ripe, layered with fruit, and possess a particular goût de terroir. There are a number of famous Einzellagen, many of which with VDP classification, and several excellent producers. Dr. Heger is a leading winery with holdings in Winklerberg and Schlossberg. Salwey is another VDP estate located in Oberrotweil, with several VDP.Grosse Lagen sites including Kirchberg and Eichberg. Franz Keller in Oberbergen with its Michelin-starred restaurant and holdings in Schlossberg and Enselberg. The VDP.Staatsweingut Freiburg is another strong estate with their Blankenhornsberg section of the Kaiserstuhl and its famous Alleinbesitz (monopole) Doktorgarten.

Tuniberg 

The 1,065 hectare Bereich of Tuniberg lies south of Kaiserstuhl, from which it separated in 1990. This hill, located between the Black Forest and the Vosges, rises to 100 meters and features limestone terraces covered with deep löss and a climate that is slightly cooler than Kaiserstuhl. In theory, the wines should show higher acidity and higher-toned fruit than its famous neighbor to the north. Tuniberg is planted to 70% Burgundian varieties, issued mainly through the Badischer Winzerkeller mega co-op. The Merdinger Bühl is a well-known vineyard source for the co-op and is the source of Dr. Heger's "Tuniberg" Spätburgunder bottling. Another vineyard with an interesting backstory is the Attilafelsen, the site, according to regional legend, of Attila the Hun's grave. Of course, the "Scourge of God" supposedly passed out drunk and choked on a nosebleed on his wedding night in 453 A.D., his grave widely believed to be somewhere in Hungary. It's anyone's guess how this local legend began, but "Attilafelsen" was an April Fool's joke by the winegrowers' cooperative, and Merdinger Attilafelsen appears on several of their labels.

Markgräflerland

Limestone almost always points to something interesting in the wine world. Limestone, after all, gives us Trimbach’s Riesling Clos Sainte Hune, Krug’s Champagne Clos du Mesnil, Raveneau’s Chablis Les Clos, the list of examples could go on. Typically, these limestone wines display strong personalities and linear profiles and are well-structured for long aging. Baden’s Markgräflerland’s best wines often come from limestone, which löss and loam frequently overlays, and a slightly cooler climate thanks to cooling breezes from the Black Forest. Baden’s second-largest Bereich with 3,205 hectares lies between Basel and Freiburg and shares borders with France and Switzerland. 

With Switzerland directly to the south, it’s understandable that Markgrafen Karl Friedrich von Baden introduced Gutedel here in 1780. Gutedel, sometimes called “Markgräfler,” is identical to Swiss Chasselas and is the most widely grown variety here, with 34% of plantings. Gutedel tends to be lower in acidity, light in body, and neutral. But in Markgräflerland on limestone soils, sometimes with extended lees aging, sometimes barrel-fermented, Gutedel is capable of more. More complexity, aging capacity, and flavor than the typical Swiss fondue wine. Spätburgunder is another variety to watch from Markgräflerland. Just promise me not to skip the Gutedel.

Bodensee

Germany’s southernmost wine district consists of 500 hectares on the slopes west and north of Bodensee (Lake Constance). This pre-Alpine setting also boasts glacial soils and Germany’s highest elevation vineyard, with the Hohentwiel west of the Bodensee reaching 552 Meters asl. The lake moderates the surprisingly mild climate, making this an ideal situation for Spätburgunder. Only in Tuniberg does Spätburgunder occupy a greater percentage of vineyards with 51.6% of its plantings. Spätburgunder makes up 39.4% of the Bodensee Bereich and has a history going back to 884 when Charles III, a great-grandson of Charlemagne, planted the first Pinot Noir in the Bodman royal vineyard. Given its proximity to Switzerland, it’s not surprising that Müller-Thurgau is the second most planted variety at 26.6%. The State domaine at Meersburg is the largest producer but the family of VDP.Weingut Markgraf von Baden has been growing wine here since 1112 and continues to make significant contributions to the development of Baden wine.