playbook
Wine Farm Visit in Limburg
A Limburg vineyard on a Sunday, a tasting of four wines, lunch on the terrace among the vines. Yes, the Netherlands makes wine.
4u
duration
€ 30–80
budget
Ground
pace
Dutch wine sounds like a joke or a gimmick to most people. But in South Limburg there is an entire region of serious winemakers who have been producing Rieslings and Pinot Gris for twenty years that are served internationally. A Sunday afternoon at a Limburg vineyard feels closer to the Moselle than to Amsterdam, and you can taste it in the wines.
A tasting of four wines, lunch on the terrace among the vines, and with any luck a tour where you hear about the chalky subsoil and the south-facing slopes. By the end you have taken home two bottles, you have learned something about your own country that you did not know before, and you see the term "Dutch wine" in a whole new light.
Checklist
0 of 5
Proeverij gereserveerd
Lunch geboekt of broodjes mee
Cash voor flessen-aankoop
Pin werkt vaak ook
Chauffeur of treinplan
Niet zelf rijden na vier wijnen
Notitieboekje voor wijnen
Welke smaakte hoe
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by PlayTryBe team
Two to four weeks ahead: book a tasting at a Limburg vineyard. Sint Martinus, Apostelhoeve, Hoeve Nekum.
25Plan the return journey: no driving yourself after four glasses. Either a designated driver, or take the train to Maastricht and a taxi back.
On the day: arrive around 12, have a light bite before you start tasting. Tasting on an empty stomach is a bad idea.
Wijngaard Sint Martinus, Vijlen15On arrival: spend ten minutes walking along the vines before the tasting begins. Feel the south-facing slope, look at the soil.
The tasting: four wines, moving from light to fuller-bodied. The guide explains how the grapes were grown and what you are tasting. Write down what you think.
Around the third or fourth wine (often the Pinot Gris or an oak-aged one) something clicks. This is not French wine and not German wine, it is something of its own. At that point you understand why this is a region and not an experiment.
Lunch on the terrace among the vines. Eat slowly, take in your surroundings. The view across the hills is a draw for visitors from other countries.
30Before you leave: take two bottles with you. Not necessarily the most expensive one, often the second on the price list is the best choice.
35Dutch wine does not exist in the minds of most Dutch people. An afternoon in Vijlen changes that. Not through persuasion, simply through taste.
For anyone copying this
Do as we did
Suggestions
- Book the tasting in advance, especially May through September.
- Plan the return journey by public transport or with a designated driver. Four wines is not three wines.
- Have a light bite before you leave, an empty stomach is no good for tasting.
- Ask specifically about the Pinot Gris and the Auxerrois. These grapes grow there.
Variations
- - Met meer wijngaarden: combineer twee in een dag, plan ze in dezelfde streek (Wittem of Eijsden).
- - Met overnachting: een B&B in Vijlen of Mechelen geeft een tweedaagse Limburg-uitje.
- - In de oogsttijd (september): vraag of je mag meekijken bij de pluk.
- - Solo of duo: voor groot gezelschap is een proeverij minder rustig.