Weingut Schäfer-Heinrich

Schäfer-Heinrich Winery - Organic from Heilbronn

The Schäfer-Heinrich winery is located near Heilbronn and specializes in organic viticulture. Since 1990, the winery has been a member of ECOVIN, the largest association of organic wineries in Germany. The philosophy of organic viticulture is consistently followed in the vineyard and cellar, starting with purely organic fertilization to greening of the vineyard to minimal intervention in the cellar, a lot of standing time and natural ripening processes.

The Schäfer-Heinrich winery is located on a "three-vineyard corner". In Heilbronn, the wine-growing regions of Baden, Württemberg and Franconia meet; the majority belongs to Württemberg, which is also where the Schäfer-Fröhlich Winery is located. The Heilbronn-Franconia region is the largest red wine region in Germany. Representative for this region and its grape varieties is the Lemberger, which is mainly grown here. 

In the vineyards of the winery Schäfer-Heinrich

The soils of the Schäfer-Fröhlich winery are loose, well aerated and rich in humus, creating the ideal conditions for an active soil life that directly benefits the vines. The greening of the vineyards also provides a healthy habitat for the soil fauna, which in turn loosens the soil. In order not to endanger the soil life, the Schäfer-Fröhlich winery does not use aggressive pesticides and instead works with natural preparations and fungus-resistant (PIWI) grape varieties, which are naturally more resistant to various diseases. In "use" in the vineyards are, among others, the following grape varieties:

• Riesling - the star grape variety of the winery
• various Burgundy grape varieties
• Trollinger
• Lemberger
• Cabernet Sauvignon
• Merlot

The wines of Schäfer-Heinrich

In the cellar this gentle handling of the wine continues, so the fermentation starts spontaneously by naturally occurring yeasts. The wine gets a long standing time and matures sur lie, on the yeast, further. Some wines are also refined in wooden barrels.

The wine lines of the winery Schäfer-Fröhlich are divided into 5 groups:

• *-Wines - sparkling, young wines
• **-wines - full-bodied wines, late harvested grapes, mostly aged in wooden barrels
• ***-wines - grapes from selected vineyards, reduced yields, hand harvesting, barrique barrels are used in the cellar
• Naturgewächse - wines with a strong focus on the terroir, exclusively fermented spontaneously
• Vin Naturel - cooperation project with Alexander Zülch Vins Vivant, spontaneously fermented, unfiltered wines without added sulfur