{"id":601,"date":"2023-09-27T15:06:19","date_gmt":"2023-09-27T13:06:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/staging.dresden-magazin.com\/uncategorized\/die-saechsische-weinstrasse\/"},"modified":"2023-09-29T15:16:48","modified_gmt":"2023-09-29T13:16:48","slug":"the-saxon-wine-route","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dresden-magazin.com\/en\/indulgence\/the-saxon-wine-route\/","title":{"rendered":"Exploring Saxon wine culture"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Selina von Holleben<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How winegrowing in Saxony started<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It all started in Mei\u00dfen, more specifically: on the Kapitelberg. At that time, in the 12th century, this whole area was wild, hardly developed, destitute and culture-free; Sorbian natives and German conquerors were competing with each other. Enter a Catholic: Bishop Benno himself, a wise and gentle man, planted the very first vine there, so the legend goes – for the cultivation of mass wine. A record from 1161 documents the donation of a productive vineyard on the eastern slope of the Meisa Valley to the chapel of St. Egidien by Otto, Margrave of Meissen – the official start of viticulture in Saxony<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

In the immensely lovely area of the Elbe between Meissen and Dresden, which is a continuous garden, there is hardly a delightful spot that is not linked with Benno’s name.<\/p>\n K. P. Will, Consistorialrath, Superior and Pastor (from: Sanct Benno. Bishop of Meissen. 1887) <\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Around 850 years later: The growing region is the smallest and most northerly in Germany; for many it is also the most beautiful. Saxony’s wine experienced its first heyday before the 30 Years’ War, starting in 1618. Estimates put the area under vines at around 5,000 hectares! Today, there are around 480 hectares. In 1811, the S\u00e4chsische Weinbaugenossenschaft (Saxon Winegrowers’ Cooperative) founded Europe’s first winegrowing school in Meissen. Then, from 1887 onwards, vine lice destroy the flourishing cultivation, large breweries produce ever cheaper beer – the importance of Elbe wine declines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Renaissance after 1989<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It was only after the fall of communism in 1989 that the winegrowing region experienced a renaissance. Today, around 35 full-time wineries and more than a thousand hobby winegrowers produce grapes. Apart from a few exceptions, these grapes ripen on terraces, predominantly on slopes, and must therefore be tended and harvested by hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The variety of vines includes around 60 types: Traminer, the oldest grape variety in Saxony, Riesling, M\u00fcller-Thurgau, Dornfelder, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir. Connoisseurs particularly appreciate well-known sites such as the Goldene Wagen in Radebeul or the Mei\u00dfner Kapitelberg. The latter is considered one of the best terroirs in Saxony due to its soil composition of loose granite weathering.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
The Saxon Wine Trail leads from Diesbar-Seu\u00dflitz to Pirna. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Dry stone walls that store heat, slopes that take full advantage of the sun, the protected microclimate in the Elbe Valley – this triad makes viticulture possible in the first place so far to the northeast, from Diesbar-Seu\u00dflitz in the west to Pirna in the east. A 92-kilometer-long wine trail connects them via Pillnitz, Dresden, Radebeul, Weinb\u00f6hla and Mei\u00dfen – characterized by the course of the Elbe, historic town centers, idyllic villages and numerous wine taverns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n