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The Best of the Alsace Wine Route
Tour of the towns of Mittelwihr - Zellenberg - Riquewihr- Ribeauvillé - Kaysersberg
Want to discover the Alsace Wine Route in an original and friendly way?
Spend a magical day as a couple, with friends or family, on our bike rides with a local guide.
This green route is approximately 10 kilometers long, ideal for spending a friendly and gentle day.
Let yourself be guided by our English and German speaking guides with our equipped and serviced bikes in complete peace of mind.
Enjoy the villages of Mittelwihr and its almond hill, Riquewihr, Zellenberg, Ribeauvillé & Kaysersberg.
Itinerary
Duration: 6 hours
Distance: 35 km
Difficulty: Hard
Includes: Local guide, bikes & cheese board, wine tasting
Departure from Mittelwihr
A wine-growing town crossed by the Wine Route, Mittelwihr was almost completely destroyed during the fighting in the Colmar pocket (December 1944 - January 1945); only the lower parts of the medieval bell tower of the church (rebuilt in the 19th century) were preserved, as well as the wall of martyred flowers at the southern entrance to the village, which displays its blue, white and red flowerbeds every year, as in the dark hours of the occupation.
Today, Mittelwihr is one of the high places of the Alsatian vineyard: the village benefits from a microclimate which has earned it the nickname "South of Alsace".
This climate allows almond trees to blossom every year between two rows of vines, on the Mandelberg hill ("almond hill"), where the Grands Crus of the same name flourish wonderfully.
Zellenberg
An unusual village perched on a 285-meter-high hill, in the middle of a vineyard, which gives it an original and picturesque shape.
A fortified castle was built there in the 12th century at the southern end of the hill, overlooking the village. This castle was destroyed during the Revolution. Of its old fortifications, Zellenberg retains two round defensive towers: the first located at the entrance to the village, topped with a stork's nest, adjoins the Baroque church of 1760; the second placed at the upper end of the village.
The village houses, huddled together, allow you to discover the typical architecture of winegrowers' houses: a cellar which is sometimes located in the basement, a stone ground floor reserved for professional activity (press), a small stable and a half-timbered staircase leading to the upper floor where the dwelling is located, which you enter through a semi-circular arched door bearing a date or an emblem.
Riquewihr
Ribeauvillé
At once a belfry, a watchtower and the upper gate of the city, the Dolder, 25m high, is the emblematic monument of Riquewihr. Erected in 1291, at the same time as the first fortification, this tower has retained its medieval appearance, with its austere exterior facade to deter invaders and the interior, decorated with corbelled half-timbering
In the 13th century, Ribeauvillé was established as a town and surrounded by a rampart. It was divided into four districts, each with its own fortification: gate towers provided access from one to the other. Most of these disappeared in the 19th century; only the Butchers' Tower, built between the Middle Town and the Old Town, remains today.
Return to Mittelwihr
