Beautiful Wine



		PRAGER The region of Wachau ranks among the most charming and ancient cultural historical landscapes of Austria. Weingut Prager perpetuates yesteryear's traditions to preserve them for the generations to come. Many generations of the Prager family have worked the vineyards here. A hereditary letter of Kloster Michaelbeuern, the original of which is in the family's possession, mentions three vineyards in the year 1715, that have remained part of the estate to this day: the terroirs "Ritzling", "Hinter der Burg", and "Leber".




		CASISANO COLOMBAIO Fattoria Casisano-Colombaio is a medium-sized Montalcino estate which is fast becoming one of the rising stars of this prestigious Tuscan wine Region. The estate was purchased in 1990 by the Ciarpella family, a medical family from Rome, who completely renovated the Casisiano cantina and the 18 hectares of vineyards. The estate is located on a south facing ridge between Montalcino, Sant Angelo in Colle and Catstel Nuovo dell' Abate. Riccardo Ciarpella is now the Casisano regisseur and supervises all the work in the vineyards while Dr Vagagini is oenologist. The vines have a high average age with over half of the grapes used in the Brunello coming from 70-year old vines. Since 1996 all the vineyards have been cultivated along organic lines. Without doubt an estate in ascendancy. ...........................................

		CA' LUSTRA The secret behind the running of Ca' Lustra lies in the combination of a good knowledge of the area and a respectful, passionate round-the-clock engagement in all the phases of wineproduction. Franco Zanovello take care of 32 hectares of wine-land. Franco avails himself of the dedicated help from several well motivated hands in the vineyards and in the winery, all enthusiastically focused on quality and satisfaction. Their work in the Euganean Hills, (which is a "Parco Regionale" i.e. an area protected under the Italian National Trust) is not only a commercial operation in itself, but also a contribution to preserve a unique landscape of few "far-from-themadding- crowd" hamlets in the middle of the bustling life of the southern Veneto – Padova. ...........................................

		MONTE DEL FRA Monte del Frà wine farm is located in the heart of the Custoza area, on the east side of Garda Lake and only 15 Km away from the centre of Verona. It was founded by the brothers Eligio and Claudio Bonomo in 1958. The firm today owns 100 hectareas circa, amongst these are a part from the “Monte”, other proprieties that take their name from the location where they are situated such as: Cà del Magro, Monte Godi, Mascarpine, Staffalo, Monte Fitti, Grottino. Others hectareas are worked on lease, everyone located in the best zones of Verona. ...........................................

		TORREVENTO With their passion for wine, the brothers Francesco and Domenico Liantonio took the plunge in the 1948 in an area called Torrevento, whose landmark is the majestic and enigmatic Castel del Monte, built in the 1200s by the Frederick II, the brilliant Holy Roman Emperor who was known as Stupor Mundi--Wonder of the World. The brothers bought a splendid old farm, a 17th Century monastery with perfectly preserved cellars, and, above all, 140 acres of vineyards. Soon the precious nectar of the Gods began to flow again, and now what had been a rural wine cellar has become an important part of Apulia's wine sector.




		ST. URBANS-HOF The winery is dedicated to producing Rieslings that capture the individual terroir of the estate's vineyard sites. Great care is taken in the vineyard by Nik Weis and his vineyard manager Hermann Jostock in order to adhere to the belief that the truest expression of a wine's quality lies in the authenticity of its origin. In Nik's words, "the hightest quality wines are a result of hard work over the entire year. Intensive soil cultivation, precise shoot positioning, leaf thinning, crop reduction, selective hand-picking and late harvesting are all fundamental steps which must be taken in order to ensure that the wine reflects the character of the land on which it is grown." ...........................................

		DR. H. THANISH (MÜLLER-BURGGRAEF) The viticultural tradition of the Thanisch family can be traced back over 350 years: The oldest official documentation in Bernkastel is dated 1636. The quality of their wines quickly built and confirmed an outstanding reputation for the estate. The estate enhanced its already prestigious reputation in the middle of the 19th century under the management of Dr Hugo Thanisch. Today the Estate is owned by Margit Müller-Burggraef, one of Dr Hugo Thanisch's granddaughters. The fame of the Berncasteler Doctor vineyard begin in the 1300s. When the King of Germany fell sick, he saw several reputed doctors but still unable to cure his health. One day, a wine grower approached the King with a small barrel of wine and said,” My Lord, this is the wine that we drank everyday and had lept us healthy.” Surprisely, the King become healthy after drinking the wine. As such, the King was very grateful to the wine grower and said,”What can I do for you in return?” But the wine grower said,” It was an honor for our wines to make you healthy my Lord, we do not want anything.” From that day onwards, the King named the plot of vine that made him healthy “Doctor”. The Berncasteler Doctor vineyard remain 3.5 hectares till date, and is owned by only four families. Thanisch owns more than ¼ over the Berncasteler Doctor site. ...........................................

		CH BERRES CH Berres winery is a family estate located in Uerzig at the river Mosel. It builds upon an old tradition with its origins dating back to 1510. Until 2004, the estate was owned and managed by Alfred Berres, while his son Markus Berres studied viticulture and oenology in Geisenheim / Germany. The 3.5 ha of vineyards managed by the C.H.BERRES estate are located on the slopes of the Mosel Valley. As all vineyards are very steep, all work is undertaken by hand. Not only the careful handcraft and grape selection is hugely important to produce our excellent and unique wines, but also the knowledge and feeling for the wine as well as the mild climate and the unique soils given by nature. ...........................................

		JOSEF LEITZ Winemaking has been in the Leitz family since 1744. However the Josef Leitz winery as it stands today was re-built in 1947 after suffering bad damage during the war. Today’s owner, Johannes, took control of the family business at a young age following the premature death of his father in 1985 and set out to re-establish the reputation of Weingut Leitz. When Johannes first took a hold of the reins, the estate consisted of just 3 hectares of vineyard; he grew this to 28 and in 2007 took over the Weingut Erbslöh in Geisenheim, expanding the Leitz operation to include 32 hectares of vineyard in Geisenheim and Rüdesheim. Today, Weingut Josef Leitz, a member of the VDP, produces quality German Riesling with an international reputation. ...........................................

		JOHANNISHOF Wine-growing can be traced back in the family in old documents to the year 1685. The origin of the proberty, originally a mill, dates back to 1790. Wine-growing in the vicinity of the Elsterbach stream is mentioned in a document in 817. "Two hides of land with vineyards which yield six tuns of wine," Emperor Lewis the Pious, Charlemagne`s son, recorded in a document in 817, " located in the place Elisa", by the present-day Elsterbach stream which flows past the manor house. The estate is run by Johannes and Sabine Eser by the support of Hans-Hermann and his wife Elfriede Eser. The area planted with vines covers 20 hectares. The vineyards are made up of reallocated, consolidated holdings of land and are laid out of accordance with the most modern aspects, so that economic and also ecological cultivation is possible. The soil structure ranges from sandy loam, loess, weathered quartzite to heavy slate. ...........................................

		SEEBRICH The name has been changed from Weingut Heinrich Seebrich to Weingut Seebrich because Heinrich Seebrich (born in 1951) has taken his son Jochen (born in 1977) into the partnership in 2000. The Seebrich family owns the estate since its foundation in 1783. The estate with 12 hectares vineyards is in the centre of the old town of Nierstein on the Rhine and it has a nice vault cellar with old carved wooden barrels. ...........................................

		REICHSRAT VON BUHL This estate was established in 1849 by Franz Peter Buhl. The von Buhl estate enjoyed great success in these early years, and the wines collected many awards and medals in the latter part of the 19th Century, under the tenure of Reichsrat Franz Armand Buhl, son of the founder. Since the 2007 vintage, the Reichsrat von Buhl estate has been involved in an official certification procedure for organic production, after we switched to organic wine-growing back in 2005. In so doing we believe we have put down another marker in terms of traceability. ...........................................

		SCHAFER FROHLICH While wine making has been in the family since the 1800's, the winery just recently developed into a rising star over the past few years, adding another estate to the elite in the Nahe region. While father Hans takes care of the vineyards, wife Karin and son Tim are the winemaking team. With a low yield policy (average yield around 50 hl/ha) and the recent acquisition of more great vineyard sites to their holdings, the winery is well on the way to challenge top estates such as Dönnhoff and Schönleber. ...........................................

		WAGNER STEMPEL Dynamic young vintner making weighty, sensational Nahe-like porphyry-wines, already among the very best in Rheinhessen, and certain to be THE next superstar-estate in the region. The estate is 16 hectares, in the westernmost district of Rheinhessen, near Bernhard. Soils vary, but there’s a significant vein of porphyry like the great soils of the Nahe. The land is steeper here than in much of the Rheinhessen, and Wagner does 95% of his harvest by hand. Most musts are clarified by gravity, though some are fermented as-is. His basic-quality wines are made in stainless steel, but like many young vintners he’s leaning toward more old oak for the top rieslings. Similarly he ferments with cultured yeasts for the basic wines and with natural yeasts for the best rieslings. All of this reveals a characteristic degree of thoughtfulness and flexibility for a young quality-minded vintner. ...........................................

		JOHANN HAART The village of Piesport has been growing wine since Roman times and the growers still use the old traditions to make wine. The Johann Haart estate was founded in the early 1920s when the estate of Joseph Haart was divided upon inheritance by his seven children. Since 1971 Gerd Haart, the grandson of Johann Haart, has operated the family estate along with his wife Elfriede. The Piesporter Goldtröpfchen, meaning "little drops of gold", is one of the most famed vineyards in the Mosel. ...........................................

		VON HOVEL Eberhard von Kunow is proprietor of an estate at Oberemmel that has been in the same family for 6 generations. He and his wife Hildegard reside in the old manor house which many visitors liken to an old castle. The manor house, completed in the 12th century, was initially an added retreat for the famous wine-monastery of St. Maximin in Trier. Over the years many things have changed above the foundation, but the cellar is today just as it was 800 years ago. The von Kunows, even though respectful of tradition, use the latest methods in their vineyards and in marketing their wines. As a cellarmaster Eberhard, who is also the auctioneer for the wine auctions at Trier and Bernkastel, uses the old tried and true methods. All wine is fermented and matured in 100% German oak until bottled. ...........................................

		HEYMANN LOWENSTEIN Reinhard Lowenstein comes from a very long line of wine growers in and around Winningen. It's hard to convey in a few paragraphs what Reinhard is all about: philosopher, lover of music and the arts, a true believer in the notion of terroir, fanatical and deeply focused wine crafter. Heymann Lowenstein produces Riesling from several very steep terraced sights in and around Winnigen. The great sights that Reinhard utilizes include: Uhlen, Rottgen, Vom Blauem Schifer, and the wine Schieferterrassen which is a blend of 10 to 20 selected sights, all 1st growths. These are exotic wines with power and precision. ...........................................

		AJ ADAM The estate is located in the commune of Dhron (Bernkastel district) in the Mosel wine growing region in Germany, It was founded in 2000, when Andreas Adam both completed his studies in Geisenheim, and at the same time reactivated the wine estate of his grandfather, which had fallen into neglect. The vineyard area totals three hectares, in the Hofberger site (Dhron) and the Goldtröpfchen site (Piesport). The area is planted exclusively with Riesling. The parcel of land in the Goldtröppfchen site, which has been worked since 2009, and is located above the suburb of Ferresm is partly planted with 60-year-old ungrafted vines. There are plans to increase the vineyard area in future by acquiring more old Riesling wines, but also by planting new vineyards. The cellar operation is traditional, natural yeasts are used for fermentation in order to obtain wines with terroir character. The wines are matured in the old vaulted cellar, in either classical large oak barrels or in stainless steel tanks. The wine is left on the lees for an extended period, and are not fined before bottlong, using an antique green version of the classical long hock bottle shape, the label design dates back to 1871.They are marketed under the single vineyard designations Hofberg (also permissible) and (only in good vintages) Goldtröpfchen. ...........................................

		WEINS PRUM Sebastian Alois Prüm (1794 - 1871) was the patriarch of the original Prüm estate. Since Mathias Prüm (1835 - 1890) was the only one of his six sons to marry, the estate remained undivided for his generation. In 1911, however, it was finally divided among Mathias four sons and three daughters. Anna Prüm, the youngest of the children, and her husband used their inheritance to start Dr. F. Weins-Prüm estate. A cellar with vaulted ceilings from an old Prüm home forms the foundation for today's manor house that the couple built in 1924. It is located on the banks of the Mosel, along with the other Prüm homes and right next door to J.J. Prüm. After World War II, daughter Marianne Weins married Mr. Selbach who came from an Ürzig wine growing family with a wine making tradition dating back to 1664. In the marriage the Selbach holdings in Ürzig were transferred to the Dr. F. Weins-Prüm estate. ...........................................

		SPREITZER Sebastian Alois Prüm (1794 - 1871) was the patriarch of the original Prüm estate. Since Mathias Prüm (1835 - 1890) was the only one of his six sons to marry, the estate remained undivided for his generation. In 1911, however, it was finally divided among Mathias four sons and three daughters. Anna Prüm, the youngest of the children, and her husband used their inheritance to start Dr. F. Weins-Prüm estate. A cellar with vaulted ceilings from an old Prüm home forms the foundation for today's manor house that the couple built in 1924. It is located on the banks of the Mosel, along with the other Prüm homes and right next door to J.J. Prüm. After World War II, daughter Marianne Weins married Mr. Selbach who came from an Ürzig wine growing family with a wine making tradition dating back to 1664. In the marriage the Selbach holdings in Ürzig were transferred to the Dr. F. Weins-Prüm estate. ...........................................

		REBHOLZ No compromises - wine making often is adjusted to current trends and preferences in the marketplace. For more than three generations Rebholz estate maintains a clear direction unaltered by these outside influences. They follow the old tradition of making pure and natural wines. This philosophy of purity is married with a daily quest for the highest possible quality in the wines. "For Hansjörg Rebholz, the respect for nature is the source of all the things, that characterize the wines." Wine writer Stuart Pigott Hansjörg Rebholz's grandfather, Ökonomierat Eduard Rebholz was the pioneer for the quality orientation of wine making the south palatine region. Father Hans Rebholz continued the philosophy resulting in making only dry, completely fermented wines as the style of the winery. Close to 100% of the wines made by Rebholz are dry.




		CHARNONNIERE Domaine de la Charbonnière was purchased by Eugene Maret in 1912. 90 years it is still family-owned and run with Michel Maret at the helm today. Michel now has 17.5 hectares of vineyards in the Châteauneuf appellation as well as 4 hectares in Vacqueyras. Michel produces wonderfully well balanced wines that combine intensity and depth of fruit with finesse and elegance. "Proprietor Michel Maret makes classic Chateauneuf du Papes that drink well young yet have the ability to age for 10-15 years." Robert Parker ...........................................

		VIEILLE JULIENNE Since 1990, when Jean-Paul Daumen took over from his father, the rise in quality of wine from this domaine has been extraordinary. Situated in the northern sector of the appellation, in the area known as Cabrieres, Jean-Paul owns and runs 32 hectares of vines of which eleven are in Chateauneuf-du-Pape. The cepage, whilst predictable, contains a healthy proportion of Mourvedre (around 10%) which is slowly being augmented with new plantings. The vines have a good age, being between 50 and 90 years old. Production here is small with 4,500 cases annually of which over two-thirds are Cotes du Rhone and vin de pays. ...........................................

		GUSTAVE LORENTZ Since 1836 in the Lorentz family, Gustave Lorentz Company now concentrates on maintaining and accentuating the quality and reputation of its Alsace wines which are known throughout the world. Our philosophy is to produce some gastronomic Alsace wines which reflect the most faithful expression of the grape varieties, “terroir” and vintages. Lorentz Estates vineyards represent 32 hectares (79 acres), of which 1,5 (3,71 acres) are planted on the hills of the Grand Cru Kanzlerberg and 13 ha (29,65 acres) in the Grand Cru Altenberg. These vineyards produce about 20 % of our wines. ...........................................

		MASSILLAN The Domaine of Massillan owned by the Reboul family is a generation-old vineyard located in the lands of the Teyran village, down the Saint Loup hill along the Mediterranean Sea (nearly 10 kms north-east of Montpellier). The clay-calcareous soils of the vineyard stretch over forty hectares, swept by the Mediterranean and continental winds that give the Massillan Pays d'Oc Wines their character.




		RUCONIA Bodegas Ruconia is an ambitious project which in 1986 saw the Sáenz de Santa María family, who have been involved in viticulture for more than a century, purchase a Winery called Nuestra Señora de la Antigua located in Arenzana de Abajo (La Rioja), together with an important amount of vineyards in Cenicero. In 2000 a new winery was built in Nájera and the estate renamed Bodegas Ruconia. ...........................................

		CLOSA BATLLET - CELLERS RIPOLL SANS Cellers Ripoll Sans was established in 2000 when Marc Ripoll, a young man in his early twenties, returned to the Priorat to restore his family's winery in the village of Gratallops. Prior to his arrival, the harvest from the family's estate vineyards was sold to the local cooperative. Over the last few years, Marc has restored the old winery and built Closa Battlet into one of the top estates in the region. While preserving the historical structure of the winery, Marc has updated the building to incorporate modern winemaking techniques, though always in small volumes and in a highly manual way. Its production is based on grape selections from its estate vineyards, some as old as 90 years, cultivated on hillsides with slate soil. The wines made in this way have their own unique personality stemming from the endeavor to convey all the special features of the terrain.