Wine region
Pfalz
The Pfalz: Germany’s warm south with about 23,600 hectares, Riesling, Dornfelder, Grauburgunder, Weissburgunder, Spätburgunder and the German Wine Route.
- Vineyard area
- about 23,600 hectares, Germany’s second-largest wine region
- Main grapes
- Riesling (about a quarter), Dornfelder, Grauburgunder, Spätburgunder, Müller-Thurgau, Weissburgunder
- Climate
- sunny and dry: 500 to 600 mm of rain, almost 1,700 hours of sunshine; almond trees and sweet chestnuts
- Signature wines
- Riesling from Forst and Deidesheim, Grauburgunder, Weissburgunder, Dornfelder
- Landmark
- German Wine Route: about 85 kilometres from Schweigen to Bockenheim, opened in 1935
With about 23,600 hectares the Pfalz is Germany’s second-largest wine region, behind Rheinhessen alone. It lies between the Haardt, the eastern edge of the Palatinate Forest, and the Rhine plain, running from the French border north to Rheinhessen. The Palatinate Forest, a continuation of the Vosges, shelters the vines from rain and wind: with 500 to 600 millimetres of precipitation and almost 1,700 hours of sunshine a year, the Pfalz is one of Germany’s sunny and dry regions. Almond trees and sweet chestnuts thrive, and spring brings an almond blossom festival. Drive the wine route south and you stand at Schweigen directly in Alsace, whose vineyards the Pfalz continues northwards.
A good two thirds of the vineyard is white, just under a third red. Riesling leads with about a quarter of the area and nearly 6,000 hectares, the largest Riesling area of any German region, ahead of the Mosel. Next come Dornfelder, the most important red, Grauburgunder, Spätburgunder, Müller-Thurgau and Weissburgunder. Dornfelder was bred by August Herold in Weinsberg in 1955; it gives deep-red, fruity, uncomplicated wines. Grauburgunder (Pinot Gris) and Weissburgunder (Pinot Blanc) feel at home on the warm soils and make full-bodied dry wines.
Two districts structure the Pfalz. The Mittelhaardt, with villages such as Deidesheim, Forst, Wachenheim and Bad Dürkheim, is the home of the great Rieslings; the Südliche Weinstrasse reaches the Alsace border, on heavier, clayier soils. Sites such as the Forster Kirchenstück, the Forster Jesuitengarten or the Deidesheimer Kieselberg are among the best known in Germany.
The Pfalz follows the German Prädikat system, and many leading estates belong to the VDP. The dry wines of the best sites are called Grosses Gewächs. The German Wine Route, opened in 1935, runs about 85 kilometres from the Deutsches Weintor at Schweigen to Bockenheim and passes through numerous wine villages. In Bad Dürkheim the Wurstmarkt is held in September, regarded as the largest wine festival in the world.
Pfalz Riesling is generally fuller and riper than Mosel Riesling, with yellow fruit, peach, apricot and a mineral grip, often dry. Grauburgunder and Weissburgunder are soft, nutty and creamy, Dornfelder fruity with cherry and blackberry. At the table they go with Palatinate classics such as Saumagen, stuffed pig’s stomach, Flammkuchen and liver dumplings; Weissburgunder with asparagus, Grauburgunder with poultry and fish. From a Swiss point of view: Grauburgunder is Pinot Gris, which Valais sells as Malvoisie, and Weissburgunder is Pinot Blanc.