Katharina, Marie-Luise and Volker Raumland

VDP.Sektestate
Raumland

"WE ARE SIMPLY IN LOVE WITH SEKT"

RAUMLAND FAMILY ABOUT THEIR SEKT HOUSE IN FLÖRSHEIM-DALSHEIM

Sekthaus Raumland

Alzeyer Straße 134
67592 Flörsheim-Dalsheim

Phone+49 (0) 62 43 90 80 70
Fax+49 (0) 62 43 90 80 77
eMailinfo@raumland.de
Office Hours
Mo bis Fr: 08:30 – 17:00 Uhr Sa: 10:00 – 13:00 Uhr So: geschlossen
Owner

Volker Raumland

Cellarmaster

Volker Raumland

Member Since

2020

Wine Area

11,70 acres

VDP: What is special about your winery?

Volker Raumland: In our winery - or in our case: champagne house! - you will actually not find a single still wine. We have completely focused on the production of high-quality sparkling wines. In comparison to still wines, these sparkling wines lie on the yeast in our cellar for at least 5 years before they are shaken and then disgorged. Some even up to 15 years. We are simply in love with Sekt!

VDP: What is your sparkling wine philosophy?

Marie-Luise Raumland: For us, making sparkling wine is not just a profession, but a vocation. With all our sparkling wines we have the highest standards of quality.

Volker Raumland: We produce exclusively sparkling wine. With all necessary consistency to bring the best possible to the bottle. And all this in harmony with nature. Sparkling wine needs a lot of preparation and many years of planning and maturing. For the base wines we use especially the classic grape varieties Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier. Pinot Blanc and Riesling - as typical German grape varieties - should not be missing. In order to guarantee the high quality of the sparkling wines, harvesting is done by hand. In the cellar, we use whole grape pressing, which is particularly gentle and also allows white base wines to be made from the red grapes. Whole grape pressing reduces the yield, but increases the quality. This must results in slowly developing wines of great finesse, with subtle aromas and good tartaric acid base. We have mastered the great art of knowing how the sparkling wine will develop when it is put on sale years later, by smelling and tasting the base wines. The second fermentation takes place after traditional bottle fermentation in the bottle. During the maturing process afterwards, the sparkling wines often remain on the lees for up to ten years. As a rule, no dosage - i.e. no sweetening - is used during this process.

VDP: What style of sparkling wine are you aiming for? Do you have a favourite grape variety?

Volker Raumland: We are enthusiastic about Burgundy sparkling wines. In our opinion, especially Burgundy grape varieties - as classic grape varieties - are the ideal basis for producing sparkling wines of the highest quality.

"IN THE CELLAR WE RELY ON WHOLE GRAPE PRESSING, WHICH IS PARTICULARLY GENTLE."

VDP: Which of your sparkling wines would you recommend to someone who doesn't know your sparkling wine yet - as an introduction so to speak?

Volker Raumland: Our Cuvée Katharina, a great cuvée made from Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier without any dosage - i.e. Brut Nature. Or our Cuvée Marie-Luise, a pure Pinot Noir cuvée. Of course I always recommend the cuvées of my two daughters ;-)

VDP: Which sparkling wine are you particularly proud of?

Volker Raumland: Of each one, but especially of our "Triumvirate" - our great cuvée, which combines the three strong grape varieties Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay.

VDP: How did you become a winemaker? And why do you make sparkling wine?

Volker Raumland: After training as an industrial clerk - after all, as a winegrower's son I was supposed to "learn something clever" - I ended up studying viticulture in Geisenheim. Although only a few winegrowers were interested in the production of sparkling wines at that time, I was one of the few students who started with the sparkling of 100 litres of wine as part of a study project. At the end of the course there was a big blind tasting with champagne and international sparkling wines. My sparkling wine took first place at that time, which was surprising for me, but got me hooked. I caught fire and was infected with the champagne virus. To this day I remain loyal to these pearls.

VDP: Do you have role models, mentors?

Marie-Luise and Katharina Raumland: Definitely our father because of his courage, vision and experience!

VDP: What are your next goals?

Marie-Luise Raumland: Sekthaus Raumland is currently undergoing a generational change. My sister Katharina and I are just starting out in the family business and you have to be able to rely on each other! We would like to hold on to the tradition and the quality awareness of our parents and at the same time bring in new ideas that do justice to our philosophy.

VDP: How do you unite tradition and innovation?

Volker Raumland: Both viticulture and sparkling wine making are deeply rooted in tradition. Nevertheless, from day to day I think about: What can we do better?

VDP: Why should we still visit your sparkling wine estate?

Heide-Rose Raumland: After our holidays I often ask myself why we actually go away. Our region Rheinhessen and especially Flörsheim-Dalsheim has a lot to offer: A wonderful view over the entire Rhine plain, our old stain walls in the town centre and of course the great wine festivals.

VDP: What would you compare sparkling wine making with?

Volker Raumland: The sparkling wine maker is like a conductor in an orchestra! Making sparkling wine is like an orchestra! No orchestra is like the other. Although the orchestra consists of many different instruments, when the second violin plays beside it, the whole piece of music sounds beside it. It is exactly the same with composing a high-quality sparkling wine.

©2023

Photos: Peter Bender