The winery is located in the municipality of Bad Dürkheim-Pfeffingen between Bad Dürkheim and Ungstein in the German wine-growing region of Pfalz. The Schnell family had been growing grapes in the Palatinate since the middle of the 17th century. In 1931, the Pfeffingen estate was acquired by Valentin Schnell. His son-in-law Karl Fuhrmann took over the business in 1952 and subsequently converted the formerly mixed agricultural business completely to viticulture. After training as a winemaker, studying viticulture in Geisenheim and gaining practical experience abroad (California, Bordeaux, Australia), Jan Eymael took over the management of the estate in 2002. There are three generations working in the business. According to the company motto "top quality with sustainability", there is a balanced interplay between economy, ecology and social responsibility.
The vineyards cover 17 hectares of vines in the Ungstein sites of Herrenberg, Nussriegel and Weilberg. They are planted with the white wine varieties Riesling (50%), Scheurebe, Gewürztraminer, Pinot Blanc, Silvaner, Roter Riesling and Chardonnay, as well as the red wine varieties Pinot Noir, St. Laurent and Merlot. The environmentally friendly and sustainable cultivation is carried out according to the certified rules of the Fair'n Green association. These include measures to reduce the consumption of resources through, for example, mature recycling and the use of rainwater instead of drinking water in outdoor operations, the promotion of biodiversity through the use of compost, and the avoidance of herbicides cover crop, abandoning herbicides and insecticides and instead controlling pests by means of confusion methods using pheromones.
Most of the grapes are harvested by hand. Cellar management is carried out according to non-invasive rules with as little intervention as possible (as much as necessary, as little as possible). The product range is divided into estate wines, local wines, site wines and bottle-fermented sparkling wines according to the VDP classification model. About a quarter of the production is exported. The winery is a member of the VDP (Association of German Prädikat Wine Estates) as well as the "Wine in Moderation" initiative (moderate and responsible wine consumption).
