As you know friends, Riesling is a grape that is grown all over zee world. What you may not know is that since zee grape is late-ripening, Germany’s moderate climate is ideal to produce perfect mature Riesling grapes.

Actually, it goes beyond zee climate. From zee soil to zee landscape’s slope, zee Mosel Region is truly zee best place to grow zee best Riesling grapes. Zee slopes in this region are steep. I am not talking about a hill, friends. Some of zee slopes are as steep as 65 degrees! This gives zee vines greater exposure to sunlight. Vineyards lining zee Mosel River gain even more sun exposure due to zee reflections from zee water.

Our soil in this region is slate rich, which holds all of zee heat from zee sun well into zee cooler nights. This also contributes to zee mineral characteristic that is unique to German wines.

Of course, zee incline also mean a lot more work for us. It can take up to seven times as long to tend to vines in this region versus a flatter vineyard, but it’s all worth it for a higher quality product.

So yes, friends, zee Riesling grapes are grown all over zee world, but nobody grows Riesling like we do in Germany.

As I’ve said before friends, much has changed about zee wine business over zee years. One of zee best examples is fermentation. What is fermentation, you ask? Fermentation is a process by which zee sugar in zee juice is converted to alcohol. I have written about it before, so if you want to read more, click here.

Now back to mein point, friends. How winemakers manage zee fermentation has changed considerably. One of zee reasons is for zee safety of those making zee wine! When zee sugar is converted to alcohol it creates carbon dioxide, which as you know can be very dangerous. In zee days of mein ancestors, zee vintners did not have good ventilation in zee cellars, so if there was a leak, carbon dioxide could build up. For that reason they would light candles just about three feet from zee floor. If zee candles went out, then they knew zee cellar needed to be aired out before they entered.

Zee photo above shows an old wine cellar where wine would ferment. Zee one below shows zee fermenters we use today. Isn’t it amazing how things have changed, friends? If you have anymore questions about zee winemaking process, just email me or send me a Tweet!

Friends, since you’re reading mein blog I am assuming you have at least tried one or two of mein tasty Rieslings, but have you ever wondered how such a fine product is made? If so, keep reading! I have put together all of zee steps involved in wine making, starting, of course, with zee…

Grapes
This part you knew, right? Well, zee grape is zee most important part of zee whole process! From zee type of grape to when it is picked from zee vine, every detail matters. Even zee soil, location, incline of zee landscape und atmosphere affect zee grapes, which is why zee Mosel region is such a desirable place to grow Riesling grapes.

Harvest
Rieslings are late-ripening by nature, und there is a large window of time in which zee grapes are harvested. Zee ripeness of zee grape greatly affects the type of wine produced. To make mein Kabinett, we often pick around September, but it may be earlier or later depending on zee weather that year. For an Eisweins und Beerenauslese, we may be picking as late as December. In fact, this year zee window was so late in zee year that zee 2011 Eiswein harvest was picked in 2012!

Sorting
After zee grapes are picked they are hand-sorted to check zee quality of zee grapes. Only zee highest quality of grapes get past this process, so we take out zee rotten und dried grapes.

Destemming zee Grapes
While some of zee leaves are removed in zee sorting, stems are pulled from zee grapes in a machine, not surprisingly called a destemmer.

Fermentation
White wines, such as mein Rieslings, are pressed to separate zee skins und juices. At this point some wines will ferment naturally with a wild yeast, while others use a dried cultured yeast. Simply put, zee yeast will eat zee sugars und zee bi-product is alcohol!

Press
After zee fermentation is complete zee wine is drained to a press. As you may have guessed, zee wine is literally pressed to make sure we get every last drop of wine. The photo to zee right shows an old wine press.

Aging
All wines are different but after zee wine has been pressed it will go into a cool area, similar to your cellar. Some wines will only age a few months, while others take years. This helps zee wine mature to zee desired product. Some red wines will be aged in oak barrels, but Schmitt Sohne wines are aged in stainless steel tanks.

Bottling
Once zee wine is mature, it will be filtered for clarity und promptly bottled. After that, friends, we ship our wine und it is ready to drink immediately – no aging required! In fact, I recommend drinking zee wine within zee first four years.

That’s it friends! Simply as that, right? Now when you are enjoying a few drinks with friends you can show off your wine knowledge. If you have any questions, please let me know on mein Twitter or Facebook page.”