Berlin, Germany (Weltexpress). With the onset of midsummer, which in our latitudes means the period from the beginning of July to mid-August, Ms Meister from the agency for advertising and public relations called Meister-Plan sent a press release (July 6th, 2020) with the topic: “70th Birthday of Weinkellerei Hohenlohe ”.
70th Birthday? We congratulate you on a story that “began in the summer of 1950″. On the home page of the Hohenlohe winery it says literally: “On Friday, June 23, 1950, the founding meeting of the Weinkellerei-Genossenschaft Hohenlohe took place in the ‘Rose’ room in Öhringen. All twelve local cooperatives, also newly founded in 1950, and the Winzergenossenschaften Michelbach-Söllbach and Windischenbach joined the winery cooperative. ‘Together we are strong’, they knew, and within a few years they brought the Fürstenfass brand to national recognition.”
The former Fürstenkeller in Pfedelbach served as headquarters of the newly founded Weinkellerei Hohenlohe eG. Pfedelbach is a municipality in the Hohenlohe district in the Franconian North-East of Baden-Württemberg, 2 kilometres south of Öhringen. In the local wine museum there is a real attraction for connoisseurs and critics: the Fürstenfass, a splendid piece built in 1752. The capacity of this princely barrel is as impressive as the prince’s cellar. Ms Meister states that “the large cellar and the princely building above it … belonged to Prince Joseph von Hohenlohe and Waldenburg-Pfedelbach” and that “it was already owned by the community at that time which had been “in full support of the new Hohenlohe winery” like the beautiful barrel inside. Further in the press text: “The former Fürstenkeller in Pfedelbach served as the seat of the newly founded Hohenlohe eG winery. The heart of the Fürstenkeller is the Fürstenfass, built in 1752 with a capacity of 64,664 liters. At the time of Prince Joseph von Hohenlohe and Waldenburg-Pfedelbach, the ‘tithe wine’ (a kind of land lease) to be delivered by the winegrowers was poured together in this barrel and given out as salary in wine to the household of the landlord. This imposing princely barrel, with its rich decorations, has served the Weinkellerei Hohenlohe eG as a figurehead and trademark since the beginning, even though it was not legally registered in the trademark register until the mid-1980s.
The Hohenlohe eG winery built its first own winery in Pfedelbach in 1964. The success led to continuous growth and so the winery became too small over time. In 1994 she moved to the newly built winery in Adolzfurt. The Fürstenfass is still in the prince’s cellar in Pfedelbach, which has since been converted into a viticulture museum.
In 1997, the merger with the Michelbach-Söllbach eG wine grower cooperative followed. This was one of the founding members, but dropped out in 1958 and initially delivered the grapes to the Weingärtnerzentralgenossenschaft (WZG) in Möglingen. In 2012 it was merged with the Kochertal winery and in 2016 with the Heuholz eG wine growers’ cooperative. All of the wine growers’ cooperatives in Hohenlohe are now united under the roof of the Hohenlohe eG winery, correct Weinkellerei Hohenlohe eG.
The vineyard area now covers around 560 hectares and more than 550 members from 32 wine communities in the Hohenlohe region bring their knowledge and passion to produce typical wines. Around 60 per cent of the vineyards are planted with red wine varieties. Nevertheless, the focus is particularly on the white wine varieties, even if they make up “only” 40 per cent of the vineyards. In Hohenlohe, the white wines are characterized by a special fruitiness. The main grape varieties include the white Riesling and the two red varieties Trollinger and Lemberger.”
Appropriate to the 70th anniversary, the Hohenlohe eG winery Weinkellerei Hohenlohe eG offers the following two wines:
The white is a 2019 Riesling Spätlese dry, Verrenberger Lindelberg. Its bouquet is quite fine, the aromas may make apple, apricot and grapefruit emerge in the mind’s eye. It is tasty and deliciously fresh. In addition, it shows its elegant acid structure and also in the finish standing qualities.
The red is in no way inferior to the white in the ring. It is a 2018 Lemberger Spätlese dry and also from the same location. Its aromas range from blackberry to blackcurrant. Its strength is also to be reckoned with, its abundance and diversity are not without. It goes well with hearty home-style cooking, hearty meat dishes, game and beef.
In addition, at 5.90 euros for the 0.75 litre bottle including VAT, both wines are cheap for those who like to dine and drink fine.
Remark:
The analogous translation is based on the article “Das Fürstenfass, die Weinkellerei Hohenlohe und der 70. Geburtstag” by Ole Bolle, which was published in WELTEXPRESS German on August 13th, 2020.
