In general there are bike paths between villages, so that is quite easy. There can be some steep inclines if you intend to cross a bridge or something, but these don’t occur too often. However, I highly advise against riding bikes into the vineyards. This is possible, but in that case the steep inclines will be very difficult to navigate. Hiking up is faster and more convenient.
I suggest renting an E-Bike over a normal bike since it will help a lot.
Essentially all of my tastings were one-on-one, which helps a lot with taking notes. I always had a laptop with me, and just wrote down things as I went (though I asked all of my hosts whether they were comfortable if I took notes on a laptop). I am quite good at this since I taste very often so I’m a bit used to it already.
Taxi Priwitzer is active in and around Bernkastel 24 hours a day. You can call to schedule a taxi a day or two in advance. For something more urgent, 30 minutes in advance is probably ok as well. They will give you a quote on the phone which tends to be accurate, but the final prices are decided by the taxi meter.
It depends entirely on the winery. For more commercial places like Markus Molitor, Selbach-Oster, Dr. Loosen, etc. 1-1.5 hours should be more than enough. For other wineries, 1.5-2 hours is a rough estimate, though to stay safe you should allow 3 hours. I should probably tell you that my tastings were all quite unconventional and longer than usual… Here I give approximate times for my own versus what is generally the norm based on friends visiting and online info: Markus Molitor (~1.5 hours for myself, anywhere from 0.5-2 hours for others), Selbach-Oster (<1 hour for myself and others), Dr. Hermann (~2 hours for myself, usually 1-1.5 hours for others), Zilliken (~3 hours for myself, usually 1-1.5 hours for others), Willi Schaefer (1.75 hours for myself, usually 1.5-2 hours for others), Joh. Jos. Prüm (~3 hours for myself, usually 1.5 hours for others), Otto Pauly (~2 hours for myself, unknown for others), Max Ferd. Richter (~2.75 hours for myself, probably similar for others), Schloss Lieser (>3 hours for myself, usually 1-1.5 hours for others).
Thanks for the detailed response - super helpful! Didn’t think of bringing a laptop haha. That’d make it a little easier.
Most critics take notes on a laptop during their visits to wineries.
Mosel Fine Wines has released the 2026 visiting guide www.moselfinewines.com
Great report @andyt77!
Nice! Didn’t know they had this sort of chart - did they start doing this from this year? I guess I need to request the issue 27.
I believe they prepare it once a year (?), and for the full description of Riesling shutting down do request that issue!
So excited!!! I got my hands on some of Zilliken’s AP 01 06 (2005 Saarburger Rausch TBA Auction) today…
Already looking forwards to visiting Mosel again and serving it blind to Hanno to see if he recognises the most glorious wine that he has ever made (and based on some comments from friends, probably one of the best sweet wines ever produced)
Epic wine
