where now for german wine
TRANSCRIPT
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Where Now for German Wine?
As German vintners announce an above average 2002 harvest, the German wine lobby is
working to improve the beverage's image abroad.
Germans know how
good their wine is -
the rest of us
apparently don't
There is no getting
away from it. Next
to the ABC
(Anything ButChardonnay) rule,
bringing a bottle of
Liebfraumilch or Blue Nun to a dinner party is the equivalent of committing social suicid
-- German wine has a bad reputation.
But now plans are afoot to change all this.
The DeutschWeinVision 2020 is an attempt by the German wine industry to develop an
all-encompassing long-term strategy to improve prices for wine growers at home and
better the image of German wines abroad.Although it is still a work in progress, the first results and recommendations are expected
by the end of the year.
Small vintners cant cover costs
The strategy has been necessitated by severe problems currently facing traditional wine
growers in Germany. Many, mostly smaller, vintners who make wine in traditional
wooden barrels are not able to demand prices for their product which enables them to
cover production costs.
As a result, larger, more commercially viable producers are overtaking the smaller wine
makers. Rudolph Nickenig, spokesperson for the German Wine Association (VDW) told
DW-WORLD the problem of low prices was threatening the very existence of small
wine growers who produce top quality German wines.
Indeed, the number of smaller vintners has fallen dramatically over the past 30 years.
According to a government report published this month, Germany had 50,000 producers
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in 1979. By 1999, the figure had fallen to 34,440.
German wine - It used to be more
Germans used to drink a higher percentage of domestically-produced wine, of course,
Nickenig told DW-WORLD. Although Germans now drink more wine than beer
downing a whopping 24 litres per head each year - only 45% of this is German wine. The
remaining 55% hails from the vineyards of Italy, Spain, France and Chile among others.
German wine drinkers tend to be quite adventurous theyre very curious of whats
happening in New World wines for example. Thats why there is such a market at the
moment for foreign wines," he said.
German wines have long faced a bad rap abroad, often regarded as overly sweet. The
German wine Black Tower was recently re-launched in the UK to great irony in the
British press; they found the attempt to re-brand the wine nothing if not rather amusing.
Nickenig wants a chance to change this image of the 2.4 million litres of German wine
exported each year.
Of course some German wines are sweet, but many are very dry as well. Due to the
climate, our grapes produce wines which have very fruity aromas in the main, he said.
Good year for German wine, a "good-value"
The warm spring in Germany this year as well as a summer which lasted right into the
end of September has meant vines have had longer than usual to ripen. The harvest has
been better than the average annual yield of 10 million hectare litres according to wine
experts.
Im always very sceptical about it when producers start talking about good years,
Nickenig told DW-WORLD, but the good weather has meant the grapes have a high
sugar content and that basically means theyll make good wine.
A good year for wine and better lobbying for producers might well be the mix that will
save Germanys wine growers from extinction, although changing clichs about certain
German wines might well prove more of a challenge.
On that subject Joachim Basler wanted to make one thing clear. Black Tower and
Liebfraumilch really arent that bad, you know, he said. And I wouldnt call themcheap; more good-value."DW.DE
Discovering the Altmhl Valley
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EXPLORE GERMANY'S RIVERS
1 Rhine River Transformed Into Nearly Pristine Water Stream
2 A River Runs Through It
3 Discovering the Altmhl Valley
4 A Cycle Trip and Tipple Along the Moselle
5 A Picturesque Pedal Down the Rhine6 Cruising Germany's Great Rivers
The Altmhl is the slowest flowing river in Bavaria, which is not to say that nothing goes
on there. On the contrary, the Altmhl Valley is one of the most diverse regions in
Germany.
A jewel in Bavaria's
crown
The Altmhl Valley,
which is Germany's
largest natural park,
was created in 1969
with the aim of
protecting a rich
landscape of natural
delights and picturesque little towns such as the regional capital, Eichsttt, dating back
centuries.
The region is dottedwith old castles
For nature-lovers,
the best way to get
around is by foot or
bicycle, and with
800 kilometers (500
miles) of idyllic
bike tracksmeandering through
the region, there are many routes to choose from. The typical Altmhl landscape consists
of lush forests and gently rolling hills, dotted with juniper bushes and clusters of rocks.
One bike tour passes through picturesque little towns and villages, including Essing
which, set at the foot of high limestone cliffs, is one of the most popular images in the
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region. Also well worth a visit are Berching and Greding, which still have the look of
medieval towns, and Beilngries, famous for its pitched roofs and baroque facades
decorated with coats of arms.
Traces of times gone by
Perched high on the top of craggy rocks are formidable old castles which offer their
visitors the chance to sample opulent banquets of ancient fare and try their hand at
medieval games such as were once the pastime of knights.
The Limes, the
ultimate northern
border in the
Roman Empire
There are also signs
of the Celts and the
Romans. In fact the
Roman Limes
borderline runs
right through the
park and "Villa Rustica" in Mckenlohe gives an insight into country life during the
Roman era. And for those who want even more from that chapter of history, the Roman
museum in Weienburg is full of treasures.
The oldest monastic brewery in the world
Water enthusiasts can cycle all the way along the Main-Danube canal from Kelheim in
the south-east, to Berching in the north. The canal, which was completed in 1992, is so
much a part of the landscape that it's hard to believe it's not a natural waterway. A boat
trip down the canal passes the famous Weltenburg monastery, the oldest monastic
brewery in the world.
The Rhein-Main-Danube Canal
At the weekends,
the thousands of
tourists who make
their way there not
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only have the chance to sample the eight beers brewed on the stunning baroque premises,
but to take in the breath-taking view of the 35-meter (115-foot) high white cliffs through
which the Danube River forced its way many millennia ago.
The crowning glory of a journey through the Altmhl Valley is a visit Eichsttt, home to
Residenz Square, which one travel guide dubs the "most beautiful baroque place north of
the Alps." With its mirrored walls and fine molding depicting tales of Greek mythology,
the Residenz Palace itself is also worth a look. So, too, is the cathedral, with its beguiling
500-year-old stained glass window in the west cloister.
DW.DE
Second-Rate Grapes? German Wines have a Bad Rap
Diners in some of the worlds finest restaurants rarely ask for German wines. Cheap
wines like the ubiquitous Blue Nun have thrown a shadow over wines which
connoisseurs say are some of the most exciting around.
German wine has a
marketing, not
quality problem
The poor German
wine has been
called the ugly
duckling of the
wine world.
Dismissed as too
sweet or bone dry and dull, German wines for many have been relegated to the rarely
visited or thought about corner of the wine cellar.
Indeed, could there be anything more unfashionable than offering a guest a glass of
Liebfraumilch?
This bad reputation has made itself felt in the worlds top restaurants, where German
wine falls far behind French or Californian on the most requested list.
The French, well known for their chauvinistic leanings, prefer the home-grown stuff. And
even if one does manage to convince a French wine connoisseur that there are drinkable
wines produced outside of la belle France, finding a German wine in a restaurant to prove
your point will be challenging. German wines only occasionally appear on the menu and
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then are rarely ordered.
The same story holds true in Belgium. "Our guests rarely ask for German wines," said the
wine steward of the three-star restaurant "Comme Chez Soi" in Brussels. Diners here
prefer French wines 99% of the time. From the 2,000 wines on the menu, only four
German ones are to be found.
The Russians prefer looking further abroad for their wines. Chilean or South African
varieties are popular in Moscow.
In Japan, German wines are losing ground. While they once made up almost a quarter of
the wines offered in restaurants, over the past few years that percentage has fallen to
eight. Chilean or Californian wines do better there.
London is the only world capital where one will find a real appreciation for German
wines. "The acceptance seems to be growing," said Bettina Stricker with the German
Wine Information Office. Still, wine buyers here put German wines in third place behind
French and Californian.
Marketing, not Quality Problem
German wines suffer from an image problem, according to Kurt Beck, premier of
Germanys leading wine production state, Rhineland-Palatinate.
"Its not the German wine," complained Beck, "its the German wine marketing."
Most wines that people around the globe are familiar with, the household names, have
questionable quality at best. Take Liebfraumilch, for example. This wine is produced and
exported in large quantities, usually with inferior grapes from over-cultivated vineyards.
"The fact that wines like these dominate the image of German wine is a marketing
disaster, and a self-inflicted disaster," writes Peter Ruhrberg, a German wine aficionado
whose website encourages wine lovers to overlook the stereotypes.
The Experts are less Dismissive
While the general public may have a low opinion of the Teutonic grape, many wine
journalists, connoisseurs and trade insiders think German wines are some of the most
exciting on the market today.
Wine magazines often remind readers that the finest German wines, usually Rieslings, aresome of the best around. And even in the worlds wine capital Paris, German wines enjoy
a decent reputation.
And sommeliers are more and more willing to recommend German wines to their
restaurants, according to wine importer Terry Theise, especially the younger ones.
"They are a new generation of wine professionals," Theise said. "They were not trained to
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worship Bordeaux and Burgundy, they're not intimidated by anything and they're always
on the lookout for something different."
The Price is Right
Another advantage the German grape has is its price. As wine becomes more and more
trendy, prices for top vintages skyrocket.
While German wines, particularly the late-harvest ones, can reach similar astronomical
price levels as quickly as grand cru Burgundies and cult cabernets from California, there
are still bargains to be found.
"There is plenty of excellent German wine selling at prices that only gets you dish water
in Burgundy," said Peter Ruhrberg. "Im not the first person that predicts that German
wine will reach cult status in the near future. Now is the opportunity to be ahead of
fashion."
A River Runs Through It
EXPLORE GERMANY'S RIVERS
1 Rhine River Transformed Into Nearly Pristine Water Stream
2 A River Runs Through It
3 Discovering the Altmhl Valley
4 A Cycle Trip and Tipple Along the Moselle
5 A Picturesque Pedal Down the Rhine
6 Cruising Germany's Great Rivers
River-faring vessels have access to more than 7,000 kilometers (4,350 miles) of inland
waterways in Germany. Many routes are sought after by travelers who enjoy relaxing on
a cruise ship and letting the world drift by.
Go with the flow
and get to know
Germany from
another perspective
For some, a cruise
is the ultimate
upmarket vacation,
while for others it
means boring
bourgeoisie. But the
view from the deck of a cruise ship doesn't always have to be drab and monotonous.
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The alternative to a high-sea tour is to take an inland river cruise on one of Germany's
many trafficked waterways -- and take in German cultural history along the way.
Opportunities for multiple-day trips are plentiful -- whether on the Rhine, the Weser, the
Danube or the Moselle.
The River Rhine -- muse of poets and painters
The Rhine is Germany's most famous river, in part because so much has been written
about it.
The Loreley on the
Rhine has been an
inspiration to
creative minds for
centuries
It was mainly the
Romantic painters
and poets of the
mid-19th century
that turned their
attention to the water cutting through the western edge of Germany. Heinrich Heine
(1797-1856), for example, dedicated one of his world famous poems to the Lorelei cliffs
that overlook the Rhine near St. Goarshausen.
A trip down the Rhine can be particularly romantic, despite the occasional turbulence-
causing shallows.
Following the footprints of the Romantics
For the traveler interested in learning more about the history and culture of southern
Germany, a cruise on the Danube River would be a good choice. Europe's second longest
river, the Danube has a wealth of history to offer its visitors -- even the Romans left their
traces along the river.
Medieval
Regensburg is ahighlight on
Europe's second
longest river, the
beautiful blue
Danube
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The Danube flows by the medieval city of Regensburg, then crosses the German border
and continues on to Vienna and Budapest. Castles, chateaus and vineyards are visible
from the river and invite travelers to disembark and try their land legs.
Nature and culture
A river cruise on the Oder, Germany's eastern most river, is also an exploration of the
German-Polish border. Visitors glide past natural parks like the Maerkische Schweiz and
unique everglades like the Oderbruch.
Some unusual musicians
await visitors in Bremen
on the Weser
A river trip from
Magdeburg to Prague is a
good option for the
traveler with plenty of
time. The Elbe, the most
important waterway
between southeastern and
northeastern Europe, is
over 1,000 kilometers
(621 miles) long. The
Bauhaus city of Dessau and Martin Luther's Wittenberg are located near the banks of the
Elbe, as are Meissen with its china manufacturers and Dresden, the capital of Saxony.
Fairy tale travels on the Weser
Many German fairy tales and legends have their roots on the river. A traveler on the
Weser River, for example, passes through northern Germany where the legendary
musicians attract visitors to Bremen and, a bit further upriver, the Pied Piper whistles
river-drifters to Hamelin.DW.DE
Florence on the Elbe Turns 800
Dresden was once one of Europes most beautiful cities, but in 1945 Allied bombers
turned what was known as "Florence on the Elbe" into a pile of rubble. This year, the
German city celebrates its 800th anniversary.
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Dresden has a long
and rich history
Dresden probably
existed beforeMarch 31, 1216,
which was when an
ancient Slavic
settlement on the
northern bank of
the river Elbe was joined with a German town on the south bank. In 1216, Dresden got its
first official mention as a civitas -- Latin word for city. The city's name stems from the
old Sorbian word Drjedany, which means "person living in a forest or a flood plane."
Dresden grew out of obscurity when Saxon Duke Ablert settled there in 1485 and made
the city his capital. Dresden quickly grew into a splendid city of royal residence and
became the strongest fortification of the Saxon Electorate at the time.
Martin Luther stood
up against the
Catholic Church
In 1517, Martin
Luther published
his Theses in
Wittenberg
ushering in the
epoch of
Reformation in
Germany. In Dresden, however, Duke Georg the Bearded, who ruled Saxony from 1500
to 1539, still supported the old beliefs of the Catholic Church.
"But when Duke Georg died, the country was somehow prepared, and it didn't take long
before the Reformers took over control," said historian Karl-Heinz Blaschke.
"Duke Heinrich, Georg's brother, who was a Protestant, came to power the same night
that Georg died. And Reformation came into effect immediately -- from top down."
Under the rule of elector Moritz (1547-53), Dresden became the capital of the Lutheran
movement.
A city on the rise
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Dresden continued to flourish economically and culturally. Leipzig may well have been
the traditional commercial center, and Freiberg the capital of silver mining, but it was
Dresden that benefited the most from turing smelted ore into silver coins at its famous
Mnzgasse, or coin alley.
"In fact, the entire city of Dresden, the castle and all the other noble buildings, as well as
the cultural development in Dresden would not have been possible without all the silver
finds in the western Erz mountains," said Blaschke.
August the Strong
was immortalized
in Dresden as the
"Golden Rider"
When his older
brother Georg died
in 1694, August the
Strong suddenly
became elector. In
the years leading up
to his inauguration, he had traveled to Spain, Paris and Venice. This tour had had such an
impact on Friedrich August I that he wanted to combine the splendor of the Sun King's
possessions with the beauty of the lagoon in his home town Dresden.
"Think of August the Strong whatever you want, but there can be no doubt that Dresden
owes to him the beginning of its rise as an important metropolis. The only reason why
around 1700 the town which didn't have any economic advantages and whose then
20,000 inhabitants didn't have any specific abilities became a Baroque city of this
dimension was the determination of this elector," said Blaschke.
Pomp and circumstance
August the Strong turned the river Elbe into a German Canale grande and soon the royal
family would travel to Pillniz in their golden gondola. The domes of Santa Maria della
Salute in Venice served as a model for the Frauenkirche, which the Lutherans constructedto protest against August the Strong's conversion to Catholicism.
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The Zwinger Palace
is home to
countless
masterpieces
His son, Friedrich
August II, further
developed
Dresden's cultural
standing by
acquiring important
artworks like the Sistine Madonna and by building the world-famous art gallery, the
Zwinger Palace. Dresden soon attracted artists from all over Europe. But after the death
of Friedrich August II in 1763, the so-called Restoration Commission under the
leadership of Thomas von Fritschs helped Dresden -- a city that was formerly known
mostly for its power in the fields of politics and culture -- gain a strong standing also in
the field of commerce and trade.
"An infrastructure was developed to boost the local economy. Educational institutions,
too, that aimed at improving standards in elementary schools. And so Dresden gained an
entirely new flair -- also in its looks. New buildings were no longer constructed in a
Baroque style, but in the Classicist manner," Blaschke said.
Traces of history
Dresden is located on the direct path between Moscow and Paris. Napoleon took this as a
reason to march into the city in 1806. The French emperor made the city his base of
operations. Following the Vienna Congress in 1815, Saxony had to give away half of its
territory. This was the end of Dresden's dreams of gaining political importance on a
European level.
Famous German
architect Gottfried
Semper designedthe Dresden opera
house
Romanticists like
painter Caspar
David Friedrich and
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composer Karl Maria von Weber, or architect Gottfried Semper and composer Richard
Wagner, who spent time in the city, all contributed to Dresden's reputation as one of the
centers of arts. But apart from this, Dresden -- the Florence on the Elbe -- didn't play a
major role anymore in the struggle for power between Vienna, Berlin and Paris.
When the first German long-distance railway was built in 1839, Dresden gained access to
the European network of long-distance trade, and so the city grew into one of the crucial
centers of fine mechanics and luxury food industry. One of the most famous inventions
that were made in Dresden was the mouthwash. Another was toothpaste. Dresden was
also the cradle of the first German steam engine called Saxonia, as well as the first paddle
steamers in Germany.
The night of horror
85 percent of the
buildings in
Dresden were
destroyed in 1945
The memories of
the night of horror
on Feb. 14, 1945
have still not faded
away. That night,
Dresden was
subjected to a massive bombing raid of the Allied forces. Within hours, the architectural
beauty of Dresden collapsed and what was left behind was an expanse of ruins. More
than 20,000 people lost their lives. Today, survivors and descendants gather around in
front of the rebuilt Frauenkirche every year to light candles and share their grief.
For the citizens of Dresden, the bombing raids were a horrible experience, but today it
appears that the city wasn't quite as innocent as it had liked to portray itself for a long
time. During the war, Dresden was governed by Martin Mutschmann, one of the most
eager Nazi ideologists. And the Frauenkirche was the headquarters of Deutsche Christen(German Christians). This Protestant group was striving for a synthesis between
Christianity and National Socialism. And when Frauenkirche collapsed on Feb. 15, 1945,
this marked the beginning of the end for the entire Third Reich.
Neither 15 square kilometers of debris nor the famous large areas of GDR concrete tower
blocks have been able to destroy the particular charm of this 800 year old city. The
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famous "Frauenkirche" or "Church of Our Lady" that had been destroyed in the bombing
and whose ruins had long been a symbol of the atrocities of war, was rebuilt and
consecrated only last year.
DW.DE