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ABS German Ambassador tells us her wine story

ABS Wine Agencies, Wed 27 May 2020

ABS German Ambassador tells us her wine story

Andrea Bulcock, ABS German Ambassador and trained winemaker, tells us her wine story and how her passion for the wines of Germany was ignited. 

 

It all began back in 1982, when I discovered a scrapbook from my mother filled with wine labels, mostly from Germany.  I was 13 and it sparked an interest in me, so I began collecting wine labels as a hobby. Back then it was simply the labels and an interest in geology, climate, and grape varieties, that fascinated me.  However, this quickly developed into an interest in wine in general and as soon as I could, I took myself off to the vineyards of the Mosel valley and studied winemaking and viticulture.

 

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The incredibly steep slopes of the Mosel valley require everything to be done by hand, which is not easy. I remember days in January/ February where my hands were frozen blue from the cold, whilst pruning and tying up the vines into the typical Mosel heart formation. This, alongside many other experiences in the vineyards and cellar made me appreciate how much passion and work goes into making good wine. I was 19 years old and it instilled in me tremendous respect for these German growers.

 

In 1988, Erni Loosen was just taking over the family Estate in Bernkastel-Kues and I lived in a neighboring village.  We met and became friends, during that time I was very privileged to be able to taste many of the legendary wines from famous estates at his dinner table. It was after moving to Berlin in 1989 to work in retail, that I first met many of the ABS growers we work with today.

 

My mentor has and will always be the legendary Helmut Dönnhoff and I have learnt so much from him but also others like, Fritz and Johannes Hasselbach, Paul and Sebastian Fürst, Rainer Schnaitmann and Alexander Stodden

 

Top German Riesling and Pinot Noir never ceases to impress me and I have made it my mission since arriving back in the UK in 2004 to promote them and share my passion.  There is still so much to do when it comes to educating and reintroducing German wines to the public. I do hope you will all join me to spread the word about these often-underappreciated wines from this diverse country.