Tasting with Weingut Richard Bocking

The German Wine Society would like to invite you to a very special evening with Denman Zirkle and his daughter Sigrid Zirkle Carroll, owners of Weingut Richard Böcking in the Mosel Valley, Germany. The tasting will take place on Friday, November 20, 2015, at 7:30 p.m. The price for the tasting is $35 for members and $42 for guests.   The deadline to register is Monday, November 16.

We do not often have the chance to welcome a Mosel producer in person at our tastings, and to have one with such strong connections to the United States as well as Germany is unprecedented.  Weingut Richard Böcking is a Mosel estate with a long history, established in 1623.  The Böcking family was once one of the wealthiest in the Mosel, and even Goethe visited the family villa in 1792 and praised the Mosel wines.  The Böcking estate acquired precious vineyards such as the Ungsberg and Schlossberg after Napoleon ended the feudal system in the region, with the family seat of Traben-Trarbach becoming a wine trade center of world renown. Though the family fortunes declined in the 20^th century and the estate was virtually unknown a few years ago, it is now being revived by the Böcking family.   The estate has 15 acres under cultivation, with 95% Riesling plantings, and four of its five vineyards are classified as Grand Cru, including the Ungsberg, Schlossberg and Burgberg, all represented at this tasting.

Interestingly, two of the three protagonists in the revival process – Denman Zirkle and Sigrid Carroll – are based in Virginia.  Denman Zirkle, Managing Partner of the estate, is an American, who married into the Richard Böcking family while he was on an external assignment for IBM in Frankfurt.   Sigrid Carroll, Director of North American Marketing for the winery, is a direct Böcking descendant through her mother, who was a granddaughter of Kurt Böcking.  She was educated in the United States but has frequently traveled to Germany and worked summers in the family vineyards in Traben-Trarbach while in her teens. 

You will hear more about this exciting undertaking during the tasting. Denman Zirkle and Sigrid Carroll will pour a selection of the Weingut Richard Böcking wines, which are all available in the US (some in Washington, D.C. and Virginia, while others are available in Montana and the New York/New Jersey area).

2014 RichHeart Riesling

2014 RichHeart Pinot Blanc (Weissburgunder)

2013 Devon Riesling

2014 Devon Riesling

2012 “M” Trarbacher Burgberg Kabinett Riesling

2013 “M” Trarbacher Burgberg Spätlese  Riesling

2012 Trarbacher Ungsberg Alte Reben Riesling

2012 Trarbacher Burgberg Alte Reben Riesling

2014 Trarbacher Ungsberg Alte Reben  Riesling

2014 Trarbacher Schlossberg Alte Reben  Riesling

Most of the Weingut Richard Böcking wines are in the dry to off-dry (feinherb) range, with the exception of the “M” wines.  We will have a variety of light food (cheeses, crackers, pretzel sandwiches from Heidelberg Bakery) to accompany the tasting.

The tasting will be held at the Harbour Square Club Room. The address for our tasting is 500 N St SW, Washington, DC. 20024. It is very easy to get to and park there. Marilyn Scarbrough has thoughtfully reserved a few spaces in her complex’s visitors parking, but we cannot guarantee that these will be available. Metro is very accessible, the Green Line, Waterfront.

All Society members and guests are reminded that alcohol consumption can lead to intoxication, and therefore Society members and their guests are expected to drink in moderation at Society events.  It is advisable to provide designated drivers or other modes of transit where available, or mostly to taste rather than consume alcohol when such drivers or alternative means of transportation are not available.  

Event coordinators:  Carl Willner and Christian Schiller.   We can be reached with any questions through the GWS Capital Chapter website, germanwinesocietydc.org .

We now have two options to reserve and pay for attendance at our events!   Members and guests can still send in a check, as in the past, to the German Wine Society.   But we are now in the electronic age too, and you can alternatively register for events on our website and make payment by Paypal.  You will need to set up a GWS account on our website to register, and also have a Paypal account ready to use for payment.

If you prefer to pay via check please make it payable to:

German Wine Society

Please send your check to:

German Wine Society c/o Michael Fritze

1602 Greenbriar Court

Reston, VA  20190

Register for this Event