Days of Open Wine Cellars and Vineyards — Saale-Unstrut

A Weekend of Open Cellars

The Days of Open Wine Cellars and Vineyards are one of the finest opportunities to get to know Germany's northernmost classic wine-growing region. The organizer is the Saale-Unstrut Winegrowers' Association, which annually invites around 50 wineries and winegrowing stations along the region's three wine routes to participate on the first weekend of August: the Saale-Unstrut Wine Route, the Mansfelder Seen Wine Route, and the Weiße Elster Wine Route.

Over 20 wineries offer exclusive behind-the-scenes glimpses: cellar tours, tastings, vineyard hikes, canoe trips on the Unstrut, music, and dancing. A rare opportunity to talk personally with the winegrowers.

The Night of Lights — The Iconic Highlight

The weekend's highlight is the 10th Night of Lights in the Herzogliches Weinberg in Freyburg on Saturday evening. Hundreds of candles, torches, and LED lights illuminate the historic steep slope above the Unstrut — an almost dreamlike staging of the vineyard on a summer night, with live music, sparkling wine, and wines from the participating vintners.

Saale-Unstrut — The Northernmost Classic Wine Region

The Saale-Unstrut wine region extends across southern Saxony-Anhalt and northern Thuringia. With around 750 hectares of vineyards, it is one of Germany's smaller wine regions, but with over 1,000 years of documented tradition, it is one of the oldest. The cool locations, the shell limestone soils, and the protected valley situation result in predominantly fresh, mineral white wines — Müller-Thurgau, Silvaner, Weißburgunder, Riesling — as well as increasingly high-quality Spätburgunder.

Around and About

For those staying longer: The UNESCO World Heritage city of Naumburg with its cathedral is only 15 km away, as are the Rudelsburg and Burg Saaleck castles. Freyburg itself is worth an overnight stay with the Rotkäppchen sparkling wine cellars, Neuenburg Castle, and its historic town center. Winemakers from Laucha and wineries from Bad Kösen also participate in the weekend.