The Rheingau is one of the most unique microclimates in the world, perfect for Riesling and Pinot Noir. With its gorgeous views of the Rhine River, its many Medieval an Baroque castles, the Rhiengau is a wine lovers dream.
Getting There
The Rhiengau was the last stop on our latest European Roadtrip. As you know, we started in Frankfurt, road tripped our way to Wiesbaden, and ended in the villages of the Rhiengau, including: Kiedrich, Rudesheim and Eltsville. The Rheingau is less than an hour away from the Frankfurt Airport. So this is definitely an accessible hidden gem.
Where to Go
The Rheingau is the perfect place for a wine tour because there is just so much to do – wineries, ancient castles, and historic abbeys, and so much more. On the first day, we drove straight to the Schloss Vollrads in Winkel from Wiesbaden.
Exclusively a Riesling producer, Schloss Vollrads is the perfect place to spend an afternoon, and the locals do! There is a café, picnic tables, and lots of beautiful scenery! We were fortunate enough to enjoy a guided tour of the vineyards, grounds, and the castle.
Next stop was the nearby Brentanohaus, with the Baroness Brentano herself. Once a waterfront vacation home that played host to guest like Goethe, the estate is now a beautiful historical museum, vineyard, and restaurant. We enjoyed a delightful lunch under the trees and tried their Allendorf wine.
After touring the vineyards, we were in for a bit of history at the Kirche Kiedrich, a basilica dedicated to St. Valentine. Built towards the end of the 13th century, the church is an amazing example of 13th, 14th and 15th century architecture and art. Fortunately spared during WWII, everything inside is original, even the 15th century wooden pews with amazing examples of German woodcarvings.
And you can’t visit this part of the world, without making it to the Eberbach Abbey, a picture perfect example of a Cistercian monastery and ancient wine presses.
And when all that exploring wears you out, head to Rudesheimer Schloss for a fantastically German dinner of Schnitzel and sausage. If it’s springtime, help yourself to plenty of local seasonal white asparagus! Oh an FYI there is live music and usually dancing most nights. We were there on a Monday night and the whole restaurant was hopping!
But remember, you are in the Rheingau. You won’t be drinking beer with your schnitzel, you’ll be having some crisp white wine, most likely a Riesling from one of the local wineries.
Where to Stay
There are so many cute villages along the Rhine that would be great choices for a home base on your Rheingau adventure. We choose the town of Kiedrich and stayed at the Hotel Nassauer Hof. It was convenient to all our stops and was a cozy home away from and even had parking onsite.
Castle Hopping
Any visit to the Rhine has to include some castle hopping. One easy way to get not a great view of the castles is to take a River cruise. We hopped on in Rudesheim and headed across the river to the Romantik Schloss, enjoyed the castle, tried their house wine, and enjoyed the views of the Rhine.
When we were done, we hopped back on the boat and this time got off at Assmannhausen, a charming little village. When you get off the boat, you take a quick walk up through the town to the chair lift up the side of the hill through some lovely vineyards.
Once at the top, there is a fairytale forest you get to hike through, with lots of little treasures hidden along the way, old forts, gorgeous vistas, and just lush greenery.
When you get to the other side, you are greeted by a gigantic “Statue of Germania,” which commemorates the unification of Germany in the late 1800s, as well as another commanding view of the Rhine.
This hike was the perfect way to end or our trip through the Rheingau!
One response to “Views, Vino and Wiener Schnitzel in Germany’s Rheingau”
Jqlouise, thank you for this post. Its very inspiring.