In the historic wine cellar of the State Winery Meersburg

Wine and Wine growing have both a long history in Meersburg and at Lake Constance, and as old is the State Winery Meersburg, the Staatsweingut Meersburg. First mentioned in historical documents in 1324 the origins can be even traced back to the era of the Romans. The wine cellar of the State Winery Meersburg, that is today still in use, was erected between 1720 and 1722 by Prince Bishop von Stauffenberg. This particular cellar is probably the only one with a window, as cellars are usually built somewhere below the ground, and for sure the one with the best view – a view on Lake Constance. As gas is naturally produced during the fermentation process this window even has a great benefit. The room and the wine cellar are therefore constructed at a slight angle, so when the gases rise upward in the air they can easily escape on the upper floor. Even back then in the early 18th century, the architects have thought along!

Going down the steps to the wine cellar I was definitely surprised, it looked way more modern than I thought. In the first area there are room-high tanks, but in the smaller one, there are, finally, the typical wooden barrels. As the wines are not allowed to taste too corky the heavy wines, typically red wines, ferment in smaller and wooden barrels and the lighter wines, typically white wines or Rosé, mature in the big stainless steel tanks as the fine aromas are very sensitive to oxygen.

Today the State Winery Meersburg owns a total of 63 hectares of vineyards in Meersburg itself, in Singen and in Gailingen. In Meersburg they grow the largest varieties reaching from Pinot Blanc to Chardonnay, Riesling, Traminer, Gray- and Pinot Noir, White- and Pinot Noir, Pinot Noir, Riesling and Müller-Thurgau. On the Gailinger Ritterhalde Pinot Noir and on the Hohentwieler Olgaberg in Singen they grow Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Müller-Thurgau as well as White- and Pinot Noir. I could let you guess who owns the State Winery Meersburg today, but probably no one would know it: the winery belongs to the Ministry of Finance of the Federal State of Baden-Württemberg. So you’re indirectly supporting the state BaWü by consuming the delicious Meersburg wines, but that’s what you should definitely do as their wines are really tasty.

If you want to explore the state winery, and its historic wine cellars, in Meersburg at Lake Constance by yourself there are a few options. The past “Weinerlebnistage” (Wine Experience Days) happened in July 2015 with more than 40 wines that could be tasted, but don’t worry, this event is organized annually. A more individual option are wine tastings, organized for smaller or bigger groups. Otherwise, just visit their Winery Tavern Gutsschänke and enjoy some Meersburger Wines with a great view on the Lake.