VDP.ESTATE
PFEFFINGEN

“OUR FAVORITE GRAPE VARIETY IS SCHEUREBE.”

JAN EYMAEL SPEAKS ABOUT HIS WINE AND WINE ESTATE IN UNGSTEIN

Pfeffingen

Pfeffingen 2
67098 Bad Dürkheim

Phone+49 (0)6322/8607
eMailinfo@pfeffingen.de
Office Hours
Mo-Fr 8.00-12.00, 13.00-18.00; Sa 9.00-12.00, 13.00-16.00
Owner

Doris & Jan Eymael

Cellarmaster

Rainer Gabel

Member Since

1986

Wine Area

16,20 acres

Grape Variety

60% Riesling, 10% Scheurebe, 10% Pinot Blanc, 10% Spätburgunder sowie Chardonnay, Silvaner, Gewürztraminer, Auxerrois, Cabernet Dorsa

Geology

Terra Rossa, Kalkstein, Buntsandstein

Growing Areas

Pfalz

Sparkling Wine / Sekt
Sekterzeuger
Memberships
  • Wine in Moderation

VDP: What is so special about your winery?

Jan Eymael: Our winery is family operated and picturesquely situated in the middle of our best vineyards. We produce high-class wines with acute attention to detail, especially from the grape varieties Riesling and Scheurebe. We introduced Roter Riesling, a nearly extinct grape variety, just a few years ago. Characteristic for the small village of Ungstein is the very rare terra rossa soil, which produces wines of exceptional character.
 

VDP: What is your winery philosophy?

Jan Eymael: We want to produce high-class, but above all, authentic wines that truly inspire and taste of the place where they have grown.

VDP: Do you have a favourite grape variety?

Jan Eymael: Our favourite grape variety is clearly the Scheurebe.

“THE VERY RARE TERRA ROSSA SOIL IS CHARACTERISTIC OF OUR SMALL VILLAGE AND YIELDS EXTRAORDINARY WINES.”

VDP: Which of your wines would you recommend to someone who doesn't yet know your winery – as an introduction, so to speak?

Jan Eymael: First a Riesling, namely our Riesling VDP.GUTSWEIN "EY mal 1" – a play on words with our family name Eymael – is a prime example of a dry Pfeffinger Riesling. It is crisp and juicy with fine minerality.

VDP: Of which wine are you particularly proud?

Jan Eymael: Of our Ungstein Scheurebe -SP- VDP.ORTSWEIN, which is a tribute to the great white wines of the Bordeaux region.

VDP: Why did you become a vintner?

Jan Eymael: When you grow up as part of a wine-growing family, you come into contact with the daily work at the winery and in the vineyard very early on. You experience how arduous and sacrificing everyday life can be. But when I was later allowed to take part in a big wine tasting for the first time as an adolescent, I noticed that winegrowing has much more to offer than hard work, that it is something very versatile and complex. It became clear later that this was my profession. In the course of time, I have also learned to appreciate reward in the form of recognition and praise from customers, which really motivates long term.

VDP: Do you have role models?

Jan Eymael: My grandfather Karl Fuhrmann influenced me greatly as did my mentors Karl-Heinz Bauer from the former Weingut Dr. Deinhard and Hans-Günter Schwarz from Weingut Müller-Catoir.
 

VDP: How do you combine tradition and innovation?

Jan Eymael: As the saying goes, ‘tradition means passing the torch and not the worship of ashes’. Anyone who stops will be overtaken. Stagnation is regression. Of course, there are things at the winery that have proven their value. It is from this that tradition evolves. There are always things that have to be changed and improved.

©2023

Photos: Peter Bender