The love of wine knows no boundaries, and vines know no political borders. Vintners on both sides of the French-German border in this northeastern-most corner of Alsace tend the land together, owning, or working, parcels on both sides, producing wines, and sharing a growing passion for quality wines. A wine-themed circuit hike here, developed by French and German regional and local tourism authorities, likewise shows a spirit of cooperation. This has produced excellent results, both in wine education, and in an easy, family-friendly hike through an historic French town, a quaint German village, and of course, vineyards.
This hike crosses the border between France and Germany twice. But before there was a border, there were vines. These vineyards, and many others both north and south of the border, belonged to the abbey in Wissembourg, in Alsace. And even though the abbey and the borders (for all practical purposes) have gone, the vines remain. Yet another reminder of the crucial, regional role abbeys and monasteries played in reviving viticulture in these areas after the fall of the Roman Empire.
What I Learned
The vineyards above the German village of Schweigen-Rechtenbach and the French town of Wissembourg have a viticulture history and a wine-making passion in common. Grapes have been cultivated for centuries. The vineyards in this area once all belonged to the Merovingian abbey in Wissembourg. Over time, these have become named, and a circuit trail passes through or by them. They are, from south to north: the Kammerberg, the Raedling, the Strohlenberg and the St. Paul, in France, and the Sonnenberg, in Germany.
Continue reading Wine Notes: Suedliche Weinstrasse and Bas Rhin
Trail Name: Circuit Viticole Transfrontalier (French) / Grenzuberschreitender Rundweg durch die Weinberge (German)
Trail Type: Short distance circuit; almost exclusively paved, well maintained, extremely well marked.
Length: total: 7 kilometers/ 4.3 miles
Convenient to: Karlsruhe and Landau, Germany
Marking: Red circle on white rectangular background
Continue reading Circuit Viticole Transfrontalier: Trail in a Nutshell
A cool and misty delight, is how I will remember this trail. Although in Italy, this trail had the weather, but more importantly, the care for its trails that reminded me of trails in Germany: neat, maintained, well-marked, and thoughtfully laid out to begin with, to include lots of rest areas, diverse views, and pubs and cafes along the way.
What I Learned:
In the South Tirol area as a whole, almost 45 percent of the territory is planted with red varietals. These include Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Pinot Noir, and two special varietals: Lagrein, and Vernatsch. These two grape varietals have indigenous origins, and have been traditionally vinified in the South Tirol for centuries.
The wine region of Suedtirol Alto Adige has seven wine districts. The Oltradige district, the area around Kaltern and Eppan, is dominated by high hills on both the east and west sides of a valley, and contains a lake in the middle. This district produces one third of all wine from the region, with white wine production predominating slightly at 56 percent. However, the red varietals and wines from this district are unique, especially when from around the lake called both Kalterer See (in German), and Lago di Caldaro (in Italian).
Trail Name: Wein.weg
Trail Type: Short distance circuit; almost exclusively paved, well maintained, and well-marked albeit with successively different path numbers.
Length: Approximately 9.5 kilometers / 5.9 miles
Convenient to: Bozen/Bolzano, Italy
Marking: Red and white markings with black numbers for paths 12, 12a, and 3 (Seerundweg)
