German Wine Route by Motorhome

Gentle wine country, lush orchards, the Palatinate Forest with quiet valleys and murmuring brooks and a Mediterranean climate - that is the German Wine Route.
The first wine tourism route in Germany begins in the north at Bockenheim (near Worms) and ends after approx. 85 kilometers at the French border in Schweigen-Rechtenbach. The region in the southern half is also called the Southern Wine Route.

With over 1800 hours of sunshine annually, the area around the German Wine Route has a climate that is almost reminiscent of the Mediterranean countries, and the area is even advertised as "Germany's Tuscany". As a result of the mild climate, figs, kiwis, pines, cypresses, Palm trees, bananas and chestnuts: The Wine Route is also known for the almond trees that stand to the right and left of the route and usually begin to bloom pink or white as early as the end of February / beginning of March. Then the Almond Blossom Festival is celebrated in Gimmeldingen.

The typical plant on the German Wine Route, however, is the grapevine, which almost exclusively characterizes regional agriculture. Introduced by the Romans shortly after the turn of the Christian era, the vine found ideal conditions here: warmth, as mentioned, poor rainfall due to the Palatinate Forest upstream to the west, mitigation of late night frosts due to the slopes, which accelerate the drainage of cold air masses into the Rhine plain.

The German Wine Gate in the southern Palatinate wine-growing community of Schweigen "Schweigen-Rechtenbach" (Rhineland-Palatinate) is a listed gate building with ancillary buildings. It is one of the landmarks and has marked the southern beginning of the German Wine Route since 1936.

The Weintor dates from the time of National Socialism. After a wine harvest in the Palatinate wine-growing region in 1934 that was two and a half times the average, while Jewish wine merchants were banned from working, there was a dramatic drop in prices that put many wineries in economic distress. The National Socialist rulers therefore created the German Wine Route including the Weintor in order - according to the official interpretation -  to make the Palatinate better known as a  wine-growing region and to create jobs.

Follow in the footsteps of Roman wine production! The Roman vineyard Weilberg is probably the largest Roman estate in the Palatinate.

In 1981 a Roman villa and a wine press as part of what is probably the largest Roman country estate in the Palatinate were uncovered and partially reconstructed. The Roman vineyard Weilberg, picturesquely situated in the vineyards north of Ungstein, comprised at least eight outbuildings in addition to the magnificent main building with its column-adorned front and a large bathing area. The main house had an enormous front length of 150 meters almost 2000 years ago.

A Roman wine press has been preserved below the villa, in which wine is still trampled on on special occasions. In the Roman wine press it is easy to understand how the Romans made the wine. The press house contained two vats in which the grapes were crushed with one's feet. The outstanding importance of the Roman vineyard in Weilberg was confirmed by the German Wine Institute with the award of the title "Highlight of Wine Culture". In early summer, the "Wine Festival at the Roman press" takes place here with demonstrations.

The remains of the villa are accessible at any time. In addition to a wine press basin and the must collecting basin, parts of the residential building were also reconstructed. This can only be viewed as part of a guided tour through the Roman vineyard Weilberg.

You will also find the largest wine barrel in the world in Bad Dürkheim: capacity 1.7 million liters. The Dürkheim sausage market is considered the largest wine festival in the world.

The 95-kilometer German Wine Route Cycle Path runs parallel to the wine tourism route. It roams the entire length of the western edge of the Rhine plain and crosses many valleys of the brooks from the Palatinate Forest. This results in a constant "up and down" with sometimes short and steep peaks.