Weingut Jürgen Ellwanger

Weingut Jürgen Ellwanger - winemaking tradition for more than 500 years

The Ellwanger family has been growing grapes in Württemberg since 1514. Today's winery Jürgen Ellwanger was founded by Gottlob Ellwanger in 1949. Jürgen Ellwanger brought it to fame, under him the winery also became a member of the Association of German Prädikat Wine Estates (VDP). Today, the family business is managed by Jörg and Sylvia, together with Jörg's brother Felix. Here, tradition goes hand in hand with innovation. Thus, Jürgen Ellwanger founded the HADES study group together with four other Swabian vintners in 1986. The group's goal was to revive fermentation in oak barrels, which had been neglected in Germany. Initially, this initiative was smiled at by critics, but soon the wines celebrated great successes and silenced the skeptics. Thus, the Jürgen Ellwanger winery achieved a double victory at the German Red Wine Award in 2006. The winners were the 2003 Lemberger HADES and the Zweigelt HADES from the same vintage. Ellwanger was also able to win the German Red Wine Award in the two following vintages.

The terroir of the Ellwanger winery

At the Jürgen Ellwanger w inery, the motto is "Quality is created in the vineyard and the vineyard is nature". Therefore, the vineyards are cultivated as close to nature as possible in order to produce unique wines.

The 26 hectares of vineyards that the Ellwanger Winery has at its disposal are spread over 5 villages. Each of the sites has its own individual character and terroir. In order to achieve top quality, the yields are sometimes reduced by more than 50%.

The grape varieties

The vineyard Jürgen Ellwanger grows 65% red wine and 35% white wine. The main grape varieties are:

• Riesling
• Trollinger
• Lemberger
• Pinot Noir
• Zweigelt
• Pinot Blanc
• Grey Burgundy
• Kerner
• Merlot
• Syrah
• Chardonnay

Jürgen Ellwanger 's top vineyards include:

• Winterbacher Hungerberg
• Hebsacker
• Lichtenberg
• Schnaiter Altenberg

From the harvest to the glass

At Weingut Ellwanger, we do not commit ourselves to a single harvest date. It is about the right and above all desired quality. The grapes are harvested green in the summer and then selectively during the harvest. For the perfect quality, the yield is sometimes reduced by up to 50%.

The work in the cellar is minimally invasive, the motto here is"wine behaves like a precious stone in the cellar - the more it is cut, the less it is worth". Accordingly, the wine at Ellwanger is not created, but accompanied. The mash fermentation is combined with modern knowledge. Many wines are aged in barriques.