Forstmeister Geltz Zilliken Winery from Saarburg
The Zilliken Winery, or officially the Forstmeister Geltz Zilliken Winery, is located in picturesque Saarburg on the Saar River. More than 200 years ago, the Prussian forester Ferdinand Geltz not only founded his own winery but was also a co-founder of the "Verein der Naturweinversteigerer Großer Ring," the predecessor of today's VDP (Verband deutscher Prädikatsweingüter), which even then set quality standards for the great popularity of Rieslings from the Saar and Mosel. Today, daughter Dorothee and father Hanno Zilliken continue this tradition together with such success that they were named "Winemaker of the Year" by Gault Millau in 2017. Their dry and fruit-sweet wines are characterized by the mineral slate soils interspersed with medium-gray, fine-layered Devonian slate.
Zilliken Winery – the finest Riesling from the Saar
13 hectares of vineyards in the best locations of the Saar, such as Saarburger Rausch and Ockfener Bockstein, are planted with Riesling and are cultivated exclusively by hand. Here in the vineyards, the roots for the incredibly delicate yet complex and nuanced, long-lived Rieslings are laid through close-to-nature vineyard work. These wines then mature in what is probably the deepest cellar in the Saar, located three stories below ground, under optimal conditions of almost 100% humidity and constant temperature in old, meticulously maintained oak barrels. The Zilliken Rieslings, which are among the top white wines in Germany, result from a combination of grape variety and terroir, but also from high professional expertise paired with 100% commitment and an incredible joy in their work. You can buy their noble sweet Rieslings such as Rausch Kabinett, Riesling Spätlese, or Auslese online here.
