Page 33 - DiVin022017

The wine-growing community in the Rhine- land-Gau-Algesheim, only a stone‘s throw from the provincial capital Mainz, lies with its gentle hills and warm valleys in the fertile delta of the Rhine. Through the millennia, the Rhine moved its bed and left the region‘s sand and gravel
behind. The ice age has enriched it extensively with loess and clay sediments. The fertile, mineral-rich soils and the mild climate in Rheinhessen provide ideal conditions for viticulture and especially for „new variety“ of Scheurebe. The Fleischmann winemaker family - parents Stephanie and Quirin and son Fabian - sees themselves as a team. They cultivate a total of 17 hectares of vineyards, including ve hectares of red wine grapes.
The father of Quirin Fleischmann previously had a certain af nity to Scheurebe. At that time, this grape variety was cultivated over an area of four hectares on the holding. Over the years, the demand from consumers for bouquet wines fell and traditional grape varieties became more popular, which prompted the Fleischmanns to adapt to the chan- ging market. Wine drinkers from the younger generation in particular appreciate today the range of aromas from the new varieties and like to fall back on them.
Best soil for Scheurebe
The Scheurebe vinyards grow on layers of loess clay of Gau-Algesheimer Goldberg. Up to now on „only“ half a hectare and only every three years. Nevertheless, the winery managed to win the prize for the best late vintage Scheu- rebe of 2015 at the Federal Wine Awards in the bouquet wines category at the DLG in 2016. All in all, the long line of the winery‘s awards caught their attention: since this was followed by gold awards at the Mundus Vini and AWC Vienna international wine competitions . Altogether, 2016 was a year full of medals for the Fleischmanns. They alone took 40 gold awards home from various competitions. Already last year, at the ProWein in Düsseldorf, DLG had awarded the „Best Fruity White Wine Collection“ award to the up-and-coming vineyard and from that they climbed to 57 in the Top 100 ranking.
The wine list, even considering Rheinhessen‘s broad range of grape varieties and the modest holding size, has 40 different wines. We meet in the centre of the village of Gau-Algesheim, in the typical Kloppgasse, which is typical of the Rheinhessen, a friendly and welcoming winegrower, in elegant surroundings. The wide open, wrought-iron gate opens the view into a cultivated property: the southern air, the sun is re ected by the white buildings. There is no doubt that wine festivals can be held in these wonderful surroundings. „We market 95 percent of our wines directly from the farm, in the main to private customers, but also to the high-end of the catering trade,“ says Stephanie Fleischmann, responsible for marketing and sales at the family-owned company .
33