What I Learned:

Hohentengen am Hochrhein, is in an area south of the Swiss Canton of Schaffhausen, and the Klettgau wine district, west of the Swiss town of Eglisau in the Canton of Zurich, and to its south is the Swiss town of Kaiserstuhl. But this wine-producing area is part of Germany’s Baden wine region, Bodensee district. Its micro-climate is similar: cool, but not frigid in winter, elevated, but not mountainous, and warm, even occasionally hot, in the summer. In short, it is good for vines. Like the area of Lake Constance in general, this area gets a fair amount of sun, considering its German/Swiss location. Vines have been here, off and on, for over a millennium. Currently, the Engelhof Winery has planted about 25 hectares to the west of Hohentengen, on the Oelberg slope, which has an excellent southern exposure.

Both red and white grapes grow here. Pinot Noir, known as Spaetburgunder in Germany, ripens well most years, as does Regent, another red varietal. White varietals include Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris (known as Grauburgunder in German), Mueller-Thurgau, developed by the famous botanist born just across the Rhine in Switzerland, specifically for the type of growing conditions in the nearby Swiss Canton of Thurgau, and Gutedel, a specialty of southern Baden.

What I Tasted:

2016 Weissburgunder, Qualitaetswein, Trocken, Weingut Engelhof (Hohentengen): A dry white wine with medium gold color; a floral and slightly spicy nose with vanilla, peach and apricot flavors; high minus acidity with a tart finish

2015 Spaetburgunder, Qualitaetswein, Trocken, Weingut Engelhof (Hohentengen): A dry red wine with medium ruby color; a slight stewed prunes and spice nose; with stewed prunes, pepper and slight tobacco flavors; medium plus tannins.

2015 Spaetburgunder, Rotwein -S-, Hohentengener Oelberg; Qualitaetswein, Trocken, Weingut Engelhof (Hohentengen): A dry red wine with medium ruby color; a slight vanilla nose; with raspberry and sweet cherry flavors; medium tannins.