The winery is located in the municipality of Castell (Steigerwald area) in the German wine-growing region of Franconia. The Castell family is one of the oldest noble families in Germany; the Castell-Castell and Castell-Rüdenhausen lines were elevated to the rank of princes in 1901. Viticulture was practised by the Castells at least as early as the 13th century. Wine was mentioned in a document by Count Rupert II († around 1234) in 1224 and the most important vineyards in 1266. This makes the company one of the oldest wineries in Germany and Europe. Today, the Castell company is owned by Ferdinand Graf zu Castell-Castell and is divided into three main divisions: Fürstlich Castell'sche Bank (founded in 1774, the oldest bank in Bavaria), Fürstlich Castell'sche Forstabteilung and Fürstlich Castell'sches Domänenamt. The winery has been managed by Björn Probst since 2016. Christian Frieß and Reinhard Firnbach are responsible as cellar masters.
Vineyards & grape varieties
The vineyards cover 70 hectares of vines in the single vineyard sites Bausch, Hohnart, Kirchberg, Kugelspiel, Reitsteig, Schlossberg and Trautberg, most of which are solely owned by Casteller. In addition, grapes from a total of 30 hectares are supplied by the contract winegrowers of the Castell'sche Erzeugergemeinschaft in accordance with agreed quality standards. The main grape variety, accounting for around 40% of the vineyard area, is Silvaner, which characterises the Franconian wine-growing region and was first planted in Germany in 1659 on the Schlossberg in Castell. The other grape varieties cultivated are the white wine varieties Müller-Thurgau, Riesling,Pinot Blanc, Bacchus, Scheurebe, Kerner and Rieslaner, as well as the red wine varieties Pinot Noir, Domina and Blauer Portugieser.
Wines
Many wines undergo spontaneous fermentation. The "Grosse Gewächse“ are aged for 18 months and the "Erste Lagen" for 9 months in large wooden barrels on the fine lees and are only bottled shortly before being marketed. The wines are produced according to the VDP classification model in the lines Grosse Lage, Erste Lage, Ortsweine and Gutsweine as well as Rebsortenweine&Cuvées. The wines from the purchased grapes are marketed under the Castell-Castell line. The company's flagship wines are "Schlossberg Silvaner" and "Schlossberg Riesling". In years with favourable weather conditions, Trockenbeerenauslese and ice wines are also produced. Around 450,000 bottles of wine are produced each year. Many fine brandies (from yeast, marc, plums, quinces and grapes), bottle-fermented sparkling wines, sparkling wines labelled "FRÆNZI" and vinegars are also produced. The Castell winery is a member of the VDP (Verband Deutscher Prädikatsweingüter).
Picture: © German Wine Institute GmbH (DWI)
