German Wine Route
Brave new Maikammer with new infrastructure
The German Wine Route - or German Wine Road - (Deutsche Weinstrasse) stretches through the middle of the Palatinate (Pfalz, former Rheinpfalz), the biggest coherent wine growing area in Germany. It starts at the German Wine Gate in Schweigen-Rechtenbach on the french border and ends after 85 km at the House of the German Wine Route in Bockenheim. The German Wine Route is the oldest Wine Road worldwide and was opened on the 19. october 1935 by NSDAP Gauleiter Josef Buerckel.
In the vineyards near Forst an der Weinstrasse - german wine road
There was a record harvest in 1934, the storage capacities where full and the wine trade in germany was destroyed by the pogroms following Adolf Hitlers election in 1933. There was another record harvest in the year 1935 when Gauleiter Josef Buerckel had the idea of a propaganda scheme, connectiong the vintners villages with a touristic route that is intact until nowadays. Not much effort was needed to found the german wine route, the mayors where informed 10 days before the opening and many words where printed in the NSZ Rheinfront "newspaper".
Conceal the past and don`t care about the future - that is what describes the palatinate lifestyle. Wine and food do not need to be good - just plenty of it, that`s all.
View of Neustadt an der Weinstrasse - german wine road
Overall it can be said that if you want to make a relaxing holiday, you should consider to visit the middle rhine valley - if it has to be germany and wine.
The Pfalz region is maybe worth a short stop to visit Speyer cathedral, but for any holiday beside a day trip you should get to a place where the nature isn`t tied with highways. Hangar size machinery storages and huge supermarkets always keep your eyes focused on something weired. That is no place to relax - it is a place to get drunk.
Palatinate Forest and Northern Vosges in green, German Wine Route in red
Vineyards in Neustadt an der Weinstrasse - german wine road
The hilly Palatinate that is traversed by the German Wine Route is often described a mediterranean landscape due to growing figs, kiwis or oleander. The wine road is protected from prevailing winds and rain by the Palatinate Forest, the biggest forest in germany, adjacent on its eastern side is the upper rhine valley (or rhine rift). The wine road region is up to 15 km wide, many villages directly on the route have the addition "an der Weinstrasse" (on the Wine Route).
The German Wine Route has lots of superlatives, for example:
- Biggest barrel in the world, the giant barrel in Bad Duerkheim with a diameter of 13,5 m, containing a wine restaurant inside.
- Biggest wine fest worldwide in Bad Duerkheim with more than 600000 visitors each year.
- Biggest winemaker parade worldwide in Neustadt an der Weinstrasse.
- Biggest winemaker township in germany, rivaled by Landau (2039 ha) and Neustadt (2012 ha).
- Oldest vineyard in Germany, the about 400 year old Traminerweinberg, a vineyard with Gewuerztraminer (Gewurztraminer) in Rhodt unter Rietburg.
- Largest number of highways of all german wine growing regions (maybe of all wine growing regions worldwide)
- Most discounters of all german wine growing regions (maybe of all wine growing regions worldwide)
- Biggest density of population of all german wine growing regions
- Biggest chemical factory of the world located in Pfalz region, about 7km away from the first vineyards
- Flattest terrain of all german wine growing regions
- Three official institutions for propaganda and advertising for about 25 000 hectares of vineyards
Atomic plant Philippsburg, 3.2km away from the first vineyards, 22.5km from the German Wine Route/ Road. Cheers!
What to expect on this site:
No manipulated propaganda showing laughing people behind wine glasses. I won`t show you edited pictures of laughing propaganda robots riding bikes in the middle of vineyards.
Hambach castle with new concrete restaurant in front
Does it all look like this? No. It is even worse at most places. Ramshackled buildings, tore down castles, roadhole streets, massive dog faces contamination on vineyards near villages (=most of them), traffic and noise polution.
You will some `backside`pictures of some villages and towns, you will see rotten sandstone walls besides world known vineyards, you will see pictures of traffic round-abouts with piles of granite stones (in a region of sandstones) and pictures of huge hangar size halls constructed in the middle of vineyards, ruining the view of a cultural landscape.
Did you know that in each village in germany, there is at least one monument for the "victims" of several wars.
These victims are the soldiers of the german army from World War I, WW II and some other wars. The people that went through the gas chambers and concentration camps - they don`t have monuments in most (=almost all) villages.
Did you know that there is not even one monument in germany for deserted soldiers of the Wehrmacht? People that have been in the german army, the Wehrmacht, and did not want to participate in `Adolf Hitlers` war and have therefore deserted have not been (symbolic) rehabilitated until 1999. However, this deserted soldiers have to apply for rehabilitation.
Snuggling soldiers?
To make the story perfect, the monument above was relocated after WW II by soldiers of the US army. Former located near a market place, it is now located next to a protestant church. Hope nobody got stroke by lightning.
Rhine
...not to far away
Excursion to the moselle:
The - by far - most picturesque german wine growing region, the world reknowned Mosel winegrowing region is in danger to loose its status and micro climate in the heartland of the middle moselle by the construction of a gigantic bridge, a monster of about 2km length and 160 meters heigth just above the worlds most important Riesling vineyards near Wehlen, Uerzig and Zeltingen.
View of Rachtig, mosel winegrowing region, before building of high mosel bridge
View of Rachtig, mosel winegrowing region, after building of high mosel bridge
View of the mosel valley and winegrowing region, before building of high mosel bridge and connecting highways
View of the mosel valley and winegrowing region, after building of high mosel bridge and connecting highways
Hugh Johnson, world famous wine expert and author, speaking at the place where the bridge is about to be build:
Destruction has already started:
Join the protest against this useless piece of concrete and read more about how a whole wine growing region is about to loose its reputation at the protest site
against the high moselle bridge B50 B50neu.de
Click picture for protest site against high moselle valley bridge
read what international Press writes about moselle valley bridge
All pictures above with kind permission from B50neu.de.
Stuart Pigott speaking just right out of my thoughts:
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FAQ to the owner:
Why are you publishing unfavorable stuff about your home region?
I don`t like the way it looks like.
What is the purpose of this website?
Free Speech Movement.
Come on, what else?
It sucks to see a cultural landscape being tied and dragged down with fences, highways and discounters. Land consolidation in the 70s and 80s wasn`t enough to squeeze out the region.
Is this site updated frequently?
From now on, as of 31. july 2010, it is updated at least weekly.
Which kind of updates are to be expected?
Load of pictures of all stuff that meets my eye. My wellbeing isn`t influenced in a positive way by all those concrete buildings around.
Is there anybody you want to devote this website to?
Yeah. It is dedicated to the system of politicians and architects that are responsible for the way this region looks like.
Are you looking for a job?
Hell, yeah.
Can I contact you?
Sure. Contact me about anything you want.
New pictures:
Village entrance of Deidesheim at the german wine road
Living in Neustadt an der Weinstrasse - german wine road
Prohibition sign near Neustadt an der Weinstrasse - german wine road