Vineyard landscapes
The intact landscape in the Zurzibiet is home to various vineyards. The area is known geographically as the “Lower Aare Valley”. The village of Tegerfelden is the largest wine-growing community in the Zurzibiet in terms of area. Here you will find the Cantonal Wine Museum, which vividly tells the story of vines, wine and wine-making in the region. The wine trail leads through the vineyards, past several wineries. The regional winegrowers practice careful and natural production. As you walk along the wine trail, you can observe the different types of work as the seasons change. Most of the wineries along the Wine Trail are family businesses that carry out the entire production process themselves, from planting the vines to bottling.
200,000 years ago, it took the power of huge glaciers to break through the Jura and form the Lower Aare Valley. The ice masses polished the rocks on which the Romans planted the first vines many thousands of years later. Finds from the former Roman camps of Windisch, Augst and Bad Zurzach are evidence of Roman wine culture. Terms commonly used today such as “wine press” or “Torkel” also go back to the Romans. In the Middle Ages, the monasteries in particular ensured that knowledge of viticulture was preserved.
Tegerfelden’s vineyards were first mentioned in the 13th century in connection with the Sion monastery in Klingnau. Today, there are a total of 64 hectares of vineyards in the Zurzibiet in the municipalities of Tegerfelden, Döttingen and Klingnau. The vineyards are an interplay between the power of nature and the will of man. The winegrowers not only tend their vines, but also shape a landscape full of harmony. The Zurzibieten vineyard landscape above Döttingen near the Sennenloch is particularly beautiful, offering a wonderful panoramic view from the Surbtal valley across the Aare valley to the Geissberg and the Jura mountains beyond.
The vines have a strong influence on lifestyle and culture. In the wine cellars and sales outlets of the winegrowers, in the Cantonal Wine Museum and at tastings, locals and visitors can experience the traditional craft up close. When the annual harvest has been brought in, Tegerfelden celebrates “Wysonntig” and elects a wine queen. The largest winegrowers’ festival in German-speaking Switzerland takes place in Döttingen, where the magnificent parade showcases the region’s wine culture in all its diversity.
Experience wine…
