Outstanding Vinotheks Details

It's quite an impressive feat: This estate in Hechtsheim, in the south part of Mainz, celebrated its 300th anniversary in 2015. The Schneider family has been dedicated to wine since 1715, with Lothar Schneider currently helming the ship together with his daughter Mirjam Schneider. 

For Mirjam, there was never any question in her mind that she would someday be a winemaker. As a child, she spent much time in the vineyards, learning all aspects of viticulture at her father's side. The daughter felt an early desire to shape the wines with their own unique character. After completing her training as a winemaker in 2002, she received the nod to take over the cellar work for the Schneider wines, giving them an entirely new, individual note. 

She completed her degree as an oenologist in 2005, and an internship in New Zealand gave her even more ideas to bring home... and she did. Mirjam Schneider has taken over the complete wine production duties from her father Lothar, who now manages the agricultural side of the operation with the assistance of Mirjam's partner Marc Schühle. 

Mirjam Schneider was also a driving force behind the construction of the vinothek, opened in June 2014: The modern building with space for 52 persons is a flat-roof construction erected primarily from wood. The interior is shaped by oak, walnut and graywacke sandstone — all local materials. 

Wife and mother Maria Schneider offers regional delicacies in the vinothek and in the integrated "Kraut und Reben" winery shop: a fine assortment of fruit, vegetables and other products such as homemade marmalades — all from sustainable agriculture and in-house processing from local farms. The "Hofzeit," a cozy evening with wine and tapas, is held on the second Friday of each month. 

The portfolio of wines is diverse. There are fresh, uncomplicated Gutswein made from Silvaner and Riesling, Ortswein from selected classified vineyards and single vineyard wines from the "Laubenheimer Edelmann," "Gau-Bischofsheimer Kellersberg," the "Laubenheimer Johannisberg" and the "Niersteiner Pettental." 

All together, this list thrums with carefully crafted wines of tremendous elegance, or as the "Eichelmann 2016" wine guide wrote: "The new collection displays the familiar high level in the Gutswein class, with pure, fruit-forward Silvaner and Riesling wines. The Ortswein have more body and power, albeit quite closed. The single vineyard Lagenwein are a big step up." 

Mirjam Schneider's flagship creation is a Sauvignon Blanc Ortswein with an unusual name that fits this whirlwind of a woman perfectly as well: 2015 Laubenheimer Wirbelwind.