The winery is located in the city of Würzburg in the German wine-growing region of Franconia. It was founded in 1576 by Prince-Bishop Julius Echter von Mespelbrunn (1545-1617) on the model of the Hospice de Beaune. He acquired the "Judengarten" outside the old town for this purpose. The prince-bishop transferred sufficient income and extensive real estate to his foundation to cover its tasks, which included vineyards, among others in the world-famous Würzburger Stein site, as well as extensive agricultural and forestry properties. To this day, a home for the elderly, a hospice, two palliative wards, a nursing school and other welfare facilities are maintained. The foundation's task of caring for the sick was taken over by Klinikum Würzburg Mitte at the beginning of 2017. The 250-metre-long cellar corridor, laid out by Antonio Petrini in 1699, is the longest wooden barrel cellar in Germany and is lined with 220 oak barrels. There is the company's own vinotheque "Weineck Julius Echter" opposite the main entrance to the Juliusspital. Joachim Brand, who previously worked at the Fürst zu Hohenlohe-Oehringen winery, has been responsible as the farm manager since November 2022.
The vineyards cover around 180 hectares and extend over the whole of Franconia with a linear distance of around 100 km in many municipalities or individual vineyards. These include Bürgstadt with Mainhölle; Dettelbach with Berg-Rondell; Escherndorf with Lump; Iphofen with Domherr and Julius-Echter-Berg; Randersacker with Pfülben and Teufelskeller; Rödelsee with Küchenmeister; Thüngersheim with Johannisberg; Volkach with Karthäuser; and Würzburg with Abtsleite, Festungsblick im Monopol, Innere Leiste, Pfaffenberg and Stein. The Vogelsburg monastery was maintained by Augustinian sisters and handed over to the Juliusspital Foundation along with the vineyards in 2011. The white wine varieties Silvaner, Riesling, Müller-Thurgau, Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris are cultivated, as well as red wine varieties, mainly Pinot Noir, but also Domina and others. After fermentation, the wines are stored for a long time on the fine lees. Maturation takes place in a combination of stainless steel tanks and, in part, in very old large oak barrels. Organic wines are also produced from the three hectares of Vogelsburger Pforte. The winery is a member of the VDP (Association of German Prädikat Wine Estates).
Image: by Hajotthu, CC BY-SA 3.0, Link
