RICH IN TRADITION
The history of our organic wine and sparkling wine estate can be traced back to 1778. It has been family-owned since the beginning and is located on the quiet outskirts of Hainfeld, with a beautiful view of the hilly landscape and vineyards of the Palatinate Forest.
Thomas Lergenmüller, master winemaker, business economist and father of two children, took over the winery from his parents in 1996. Under his aegis, Theodorus was officially certified organic in 2012. Since then, only organic wines have been produced at Theodorus. Since 2020 we have been producing the wines under biodynamic guidelines and we have joined the Demeter association.
Almost 250 years of wine-growing tradition and the associated experience form the basis for wine-growing that is based on qualitative rather than quantitative goals. The result is always top-quality wines, which are regularly honored with awards and prizes.
SIZE OF RANDOM
As the youngest of his class, Thomas Lergenmüller completed his training as a master winemaker in the mid-1980s. So he had a few years to go on a journey. Working and living in South Africa, where he lived and worked for quite some time, undoubtedly had the greatest influence on his way of working.
“Working in South Africa right after the end of apartheid had a big impact on me. From my colleagues there, I learned to work without compromises, but at the same time to keep an eye on the complex interaction of so many details, such as climate, grape variety, location, soil and much more. Working with chance – which basically isn’t one – and working with the circumstances instead of against them, that’s the fine art.”
Thomas Lergenmüller attaches great importance to authenticity in viticulture. To do this, he must be able to recognize what exactly is needed and when a maturation process may have to be left to its own devices. This sensitivity plays a major role, especially when working with wild, natural yeast. In particular, the spontaneously fermented Theodorus wines provide the winemaker as well as the connoisseur and connoisseur again and again outstanding culinary experiences.
