Schloss Saarstein

The mountain shapes the man and the man shapes the mountain. Residing in Schloss Saarstein does not just involve working in the vineyards but living right in the middle of them. This makes Schloss Saarstein a very special kind of home. Christian Ebert was born in nearby Saarburg two years after his parents had bought the winery. He grew up in the castle where he also brought up his own three children. Just like the oldest of his vines, the vintner has put down deep roots in Saarstein.

Schloss Saarstein is a genuine German Château! Rather unusually for Germany, the manor house is situated right in the middle of one realigned wine growing site with similar exposure and consistent soil quality. Its southerly/south-westerly aspect ensures perfect sun exposure. The grey shale soil warms up easily and stores the heat of the day.

It is the perfect basis for the Riesling grape, which is grown on more than 90 percent of the vineyard. The age of the vines plays an important part during the harvest: Only the oldest sites provide the grapes for the finest wines. Christian Ebert’s credo: “Every vine should be able to see the river.” River and soil, water and shale – they all form the character of the wines. They give the wines their unique elegance, delicate structure and noble fruit.

While it is important to Christian Ebert that every vintage tastes differently, he sets much greater store by a distinct profile. His wines represent various types. They have character because they are real Saar wines! Schloss Saarstein believes in making wine in tune with nature although Ebert does not have a certificate as he wants to keep his options open. He categorically rejects the use of artificial fertilizers and insecticides. What does matter to him a great deal though is the age of the vines.

Age defines quality and depending on the quality Ebert decides which grapes are used for which wine. Due to the extreme location of the vineyards, almost all vineyard work needs to be done by hand. While the vineyard crawler tractor is a great help and Christian Ebert does everything in order to use it on more parcels in the future, the Saarstein site is and remains a steeply sloping vineyard. And this means: work by hand!

However cool he likes to appear, Christian Ebert cannot deny that he is passionate about his life’s mission. He sees it as his task and duty to look after and carefully maintain the historical buildings. His family acquired the estate in 1956 when Ebert‘s parents – after having lost everything they owned in Brandenburg due to the war – arrived in the Saar region. It was at this point that the modern history of Schloss Saarstein began.

The manor house and the spacious outbuildings were erected at the beginning of the 20th century by an industrialist from Trier who knew how to combine his idea of prestigious living with the production of high-quality Riesling wines. Schloss Saarstein was one of the founder members of the Großer Ring wine auction association in Trier and therefore, as early as one hundred years ago, one of the most prestigious wine producers in the region. To Christian Ebert, Schloss Saarstein is a living monument that is filled with life rather than a museum. It is about family and tradition, about past, present and future.