Summary
Weingut am Stein in Würzburg is one of the best-known and qualitatively leading addresses in Franken – and one of the pioneers of organic viticulture in the region. Run by Sandra and Ludwig Knoll in the fifth generation, the estate farms around 40 hectares right at the foot of the famous steep Würzburger Stein vineyard. The flagship grape is Silvaner, Franken's signature variety, complemented by Burgundy varieties and Riesling. Farming is consistently organic and biodynamic (Naturland organic). The result is dry, mineral wines with clear origin that precisely reflect the shell-limestone character of the Würzburg sites.
History
The estate's roots go back to 1890, when the Knoll family founded a cooperage – a barrel-making workshop – in Würzburg. Winegrowing was at first a sideline. Over the generations the business gradually grew into professional viticulture.
A turning point was the new estate building in 1980 at the foot of the Würzburger Stein, which gave the estate its present name and location. Under Ludwig Knoll, who runs the estate together with his wife Sandra in the fifth generation, the estate was consistently geared towards quality and sustainability. In 2001 came admission to the VDP, in 2008 organic certification and in 2013 the Naturland membership. With the extension of the estate building (the „WeinWerk") the site also became a place for wine tourism and events.
Location & terroir
The estate lies on the northern edge of Würzburg, right at the foot of the steep Würzburger Stein vineyard, one of Germany's most famous wine sites. The defining feature is the shell limestone of the Franken slopes: it stores warmth, provides good drainage and gives the wines their taut, salty-mineral character.
The roughly 40 hectares are spread across numerous parcels in the steep and hillside sites around Würzburg as well as in neighbouring Franken villages. The small-scale division – in part over 100 individual parcels – allows the estate to draw out a distinct character from each site. Franken's continental climate, with warm days and cool nights, favours aromatic ripeness while preserving freshness.
Style & philosophy
At the centre is close-to-nature work in the vineyard. The estate is farmed organically and biodynamically: cover crops, no synthetic sprays and a living soil are the foundation for healthy grapes and expressive wines. In the cellar the Knolls rely on gentle processing and an ageing approach that emphasises origin.
Stylistically, dry, precise wines are to the fore. Silvaner – sometimes fresh and clear, sometimes powerful and wood-aged – is the heart of the range and shows exemplarily how closely this variety is bound to Franken's shell limestone. Riesling and the Burgundy varieties round out the programme with tension, structure and depth. In total the estate fills around 200,000 bottles a year.
Well-known vineyards & wines
The range runs from approachable estate and village wines to the single-vineyard wines from the best shell-limestone slopes. Among the estate's defining sites are:
- Würzburger Stein – the namesake steep vineyard and the estate's flagship
- Würzburger Innere Leiste – renowned steep vineyard right by the city
- Stettener Stein – striking site upstream on the Main bend
- Randersackerer Sonnenstuhl – well-known Franken site south of Würzburg
From these sites come the estate's most characterful Silvaners and Rieslings – dry, mineral and built to age.
Awards
Weingut am Stein is regarded as one of Franken's organic pioneers and is consistently listed among the region's best producers in the leading wine guides. In 2018 the estate was honoured in the Bundeswettbewerb Ökologischer Landbau (Federal Competition for Organic Farming) for its whole-estate concept – recognition that here organic farming, wine quality and estate culture are consistently thought through together.