Wines of Germany blog series ‘Whose Wine is it Anyway?’ profiles one German winemaker to give you a behind-the-vines look at the world of German wine. Meet the women behind Weingut Meyer-Näkel, sister winemakers Meike and Dörte Näkel from Germany’s Ahr region.
From an early age, Werner’s two daughters embraced their family’s passion and skill for winemaking. They both completed training as vintners and graduated from the acclaimed German viticulture institute Geisenheim before gradually taking over the wine estate – Meike joined the family business in 2005 and Dörte in 2008.
As the sisters explained in an interview, Dörte recognized that winemaking was her calling as early as kindergarten, when she participated in the grape stomping. Meike’s realization came when she was 19 and interning at the Dr. Heger winery in Germany’s Baden region, and later with Weingut Fürst in Franken. “Wine is passion and for us, it also means home!”
Meike continues to spend time producing wine in Baden, now with her husband Markus Klumpp, where she and the 2nd generation winemaker of Ecovin-certified Weingut Klumpp began a joint wine label named “Hand in Hand” in 2009. It was wine that brought Meike and Markus together, when as winemakers from two of Germany’s premier red wine regions, they met by chance at Werner Näkel’s South African winery in 2003 and have been married since 2011.
Currently, Meike also serves as a vice president on the executive board of the VDP (Verband Deutscher Prädikatsweingüter), an organization recognized as promoting the highest standards in German winemaking and representing some of Germany’s top producers.
Meike and Dörte maintain the Meyer-Näkel estate’s focus on quality red wine. “As the 5th generation, we live the tradition of winegrowing in our family. During that time, viticulture and cellar management have undergone massive changes. Today we have great technical possibilities for cultivating our steep slopes, but our work in the cellar is still very much handcraft,” Dörte shares.
Like many wineries in the Ahr, Meyer-Näkel focuses mainly on Pinot Noir (or as it’s known locally, Spätburgunder). The estate also produces Frühburgunder, a mutation of Pinot Noir that was considered extinct until the 1970’s but successfully revived.
Meyer-Näkel is a member estate of the German association Fair ‘N Green, which provides guidance, standards, and certification for winemakers practicing sustainable and biodynamic viticulture.
For a full read of the article please visit: https://www.germanwineusa.com/meet-weingut-meyer-nakel/
Visit Meyer-Näkel’s website
