FOUR wine districts, THREE wine regions, TWO rivers, and ONE valley – GO! It is all for the experiencing along Germany’s Taubertal on the wonderfully laid-out Wein Radreise Trail.
This long distance trail has six recommended stages (although I only biked stages 2, 3 and 4, from the famous Rothenburg ob der Tauber to Wertheim on the Main), and merges with other bike trails along the Tauber and Main Rivers, such as the Liebliches Taubertal, and the well-known Main Radweg. Combining these trails, you could easily spend a couple of weeks traversing much of the wine production areas of central Germany. Then, where the Main Bike Trail reaches the Rhine around Wiesbaden/Mainz, you could then follow part of the 800 mile-long Rhine Bike Trail either north or south… You get the picture: Germany can be a wine-loving cyclist’s paradise. Continue reading Three German Wine Regions By Bike
What I Learned
The Taubertal (Tauber (River) Valley) is a very diverse wine growing area. Following along the course of the river, upstream to downstream, you find 3 regions and 4 districts represented: Franconia’s Mainviereck District, Baden’s Tauberfranken District, Wuerttemberg’s Kocher-Jagst-Tauber District, and Franconia’s Maindreieck District. All this within about 120 miles of a fairly narrow river valley! The frequent district changes reflect the diverse soils and growing conditions in each region. Of course, these differences result in a variety of unique wines produced along the Tauber.
Name: Wein Radreise (Wine Bike Trip)
Trail type: Long distance trail; mostly hard-packed gravel or paved, well maintained and mostly marked.
Length: about 194 kilometers/120 miles
Convenient to: Heilbronn, or Wuerzburg, Germany
Marking: White stylized bicyclist with a wine glass on green background
As the Moselle flows through Germany, its geography changes. Three designated sections: the Upper Moselle which flows from the French border to fabulous Roman-era Trier; the Middle Moselle; and finally, the Lower, or Terraced Moselle which goes from Zell to the mouth of the river at Koblenz; are quite distinct.
The Moselle begins quite gently, and gradually roughens, sharpening its curves on the unyielding slate hills. By the Lower Moselle, slopes become steeper, rock predominates, and the river forms several of its most backbreaking oxbows between Briedel, Zell and Cochem. Here, to maximize vineyard space, vintners must build terraces.
What I Learned:
Germany’s Moselle River region is as an important wine-producing area in Germany as the Rhine region. It is the oldest wine producing region in Germany.
Germans refer to the Moselle sections as Upper, Middle and Lower, beginning at the French-Luxembourg border, and continuing to Koblenz downriver, in the Lower Moselle section.
Trail Name: Mosel Radweg (Moselle Bike Trail)
Trail Type: Long distance bike trail; almost exclusively paved, well maintained, well-marked.
Length:
Total: (Thionville – Koblenz) approximately 277 kilometers/172 miles
My Segment: (Bernkastel – Cochem) approximately 80 kilometers/49.75 miles
Convenient to: Trier or Koblenz, Germany
Marking: A white letter M and white bicycle icon on a square green placard
One of the best known wine rivers in the world is the Moselle. It begins in France. Flowing north, it leaves France, and flows between Luxembourg and Germany, before entering the Rhine at the Deutsches Eck in Koblenz, at the heart, if not soul, of western Germany. Like the Rhine, vineyards cover the slopes along the river, flooding down to the water’s edge. The slopes are some of the steepest in the world, and along with the dramatic twists and turns of the river, form indelible images to remain forever with visitors to the region.
