Category Archives: Germany

Biking, Germany, Switzerland

Bodensee Biking

 

The Bodensee (Lake Constance, in English) means fantastic cycling! Any wine-drinking fan of biking excursions in Europe should definitely cycle the Bodensee Radweg (Lake Constance Bike Trail) to experience the trail that German, Austrian and Swiss nationals have raved about for years, and to experience the great regional wines as well!

Following the shores of this lake, mostly on dedicated biking paths, the 260-kilometer-long Bodensee Radweg passes in and out of three countries: Germany, Austria and Switzerland, and through or along vineyards in Germany and Switzerland. (There is even one to see just outside Bregenz, in the Vorarlberg region of Austria.) It is a circuit, which means you can begin at any convenient spot along the trail.

On the Bodensee Radweg

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Germany, Switzerland, Wines

Wine Notes: Bodensee’s Untersee

 

What I Learned

The Bodensee wine district lies in a  true garden spot for Germany, Switzerland and Austria, where fruit trees, truck gardens, and vineyards are tucked among small villages and ancient religious foundations.

It is located on Lake Constance. It is known in the German-speaking world as the Bodensee, and fondly referred to as the “German Sea” because it is shared between Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The lake itself has three distinct parts: the Obersee , the Untersee, and the Seerhein. There are vineyards along much of all of it.

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Biking, Germany, Nutshell, Switzerland

Bodensee Radweg: Trail in a Nutshell

 

Trail Name:  Bodensee Radweg (Lake Constance Bike Trail) – Untersee segment

Trail Type: long-distance, multinational cycling circuit; very well-maintained and almost exclusively paved, with excellent marking along the trail

Length:

Total – Full Bodensee Radweg is 270 kilometers/167.75 miles

Segment: Untersee circuit only is 72 kilometers/44.75 miles

Convenient to: Konstanz, Germany/Kreuzlingen, Switzerland

Marking: Stylized black stick figure on bike with blue rear wheel, on a white background Trail Description:

Bodensee Radweg Signage

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Germany, Hiking

Main Red Wine II

 

Completing the first three stages of the Fraenkischer Rotwein Wanderweg (Franconian Red Wine Trail), and breaking off at the train station in Erlenbach am Main, I intended to return to finish the trail. However, life intervened, and it took me a lot longer to return than anticipated. But the delay only heightened my desire to hike the rest of this itinerary, to see what lay hidden around the next curve.

Hidden Treasures of Churfranken

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Germany, Wines

Wine Notes: Churfranken II

 

What I Learned

Lying about 100 miles south of the geographic center of Germany, Churfranken vines grow in red sandstone and loess soils and subsoils. This small area of Franconia’s wine region is in the Mainviereck wine district. The Main River flows through the Churfranken, which generally enjoys a mild enough climate with sufficient sun exposure for ripening grapes.

This area is especially known for its red wines.  In fact, the Churfranken Pinot Noirs are consistently judged the best red wines of the entire Franconian region. So, while local vintners grow the ubiquitous Franconian white grape varietals of Silvaner and Bacchus, as well as Riesling, the reds carry the day here. Blauer Spaetburgunder (Pinot Noir), and Blauer Portugieser are two well-known red varietals locally. Another red varietal is the Schwarzriesling. Also known as the Muellerrebe, it is not completely uncommon in this part of Germany, although you will be hard pressed to find it outside the Franken and Wuerttemberg wine regions.

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Germany, Hiking, Nutshell

Fraenkischer Rotwein Wanderweg II: Nutshell

 

Trail Name:  Fraenkischer Rotwein Wanderweg (Franconian Red Wine Hiking Trail) (FRW)

Trail Type: Long-distance trail; well-maintained with a wide variety of surfaces, as well as stairs; marking on the trail rather good throughout.

Length:

Total – 79 kilometers (km)/49 miles

This segment (Last three stages): 29.5 kilometers/18.3 miles

Convenient to:

Aschaffenburg, Germany

Marking:

A Franconian wine glass (fat-stemmed), mostly red in color, often with the words Fraenkischer Rotwein Wanderweg, set on a green and white background on a square.

Fraenkischer Rotwein Wanderweg Signage

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Germany, Hiking

Main Red Wine I

 

From water’s edge to wine-hills, (literally, Weinberge in German); From an easy start to a more challenging effort; From one side of the Main River, to the other, then back and forth again. This trail provided variety and a sense of anticipation with each kilometer through this little-known corner of Franconia.

Churfranken is in the northwest corner of the Mainviereck wine district of Franconia, and the long-distance Fraenkischer Rotwein Wanderweg (Franconian Red Wine Trail) is designed to showcase as much of this corner as possible. As it meanders along, wine loving hikers will discover the towns and landscape of the red wine for which the trail is named and the area is famed.

Vineyards of Churfranken

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Germany, Wines

Wine Notes: Churfranken I

 

What I Learned

Germany’s Franconian vineyards are found in three wine districts: the Steigerwald, the Maindreieck, and the Mainviereck. The western-most sub-district of the Mainviereck is the Churfranken. This is where the Main River makes a sharp curve north, shortly before it leaves Franconia and enters the lands of Hesse.

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Germany, Hiking, Nutshell

Fraenkischer Rotwein Wanderweg I: Nutshell

 

Trail Name:  Fraenkischer Rotwein Wanderweg I (Franconian Red Wine Hiking Trail) (FRW)

Trail Type: Long-distance trail; well-maintained, with mixed surfaces and stairs, good marking on most of the trail, although missing in a few places.

Length:

Total – 79 kilometers/49 miles

Segment (first three stages): 48.3 kilometers/30 miles

Convenient to:

Aschaffenburg, Germany

Marking:

A Franconian wine glass (fat-stemmed), mostly red in color, often with the words Fraenkischer Rotwein Wanderweg, set on a green and white background on a square.

Fraenkischer Rotwein Wanderweg Signage

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