Prince Hipping?

Well, what a very nice coincidence! Yesterday, on the day a certain royal baby was being born (did you hear?), Klaus Peter Keller and family of the Rheinhessen were bottling some of their 2012 Grosse Gewächse, including the wine from their new Hipping vineyard that is designed to commemorate the Queen's Diamond Jubilee.

This is no idle publicity stunt. A wine from the Hipping vineyard was actually served at the Queen's Coronation dinner in 1953. The Kellers intend that this very special wine, of which KP is particularly proud, will be sold at the VDP auction at Bad Kreuznach in September in aid of one of the many deserving causes the proud new parents support.

On the right is the Keller family bottling in the cellars yesterday. Julia Keller is flanked by Max, 13, and Felix, 15, in the blue shirt, who were responsible for bottling the magnums. KP took care of the regular 75 cl bottles and reports, 'All went safe and without complications!'

On the left are some of the Hipping grapes being picked in the first few days of November 2012 by Christine Pieroth, whom KP describes as 'our apprentice and neighbour of Schlossgut Diel with her own 16 ha winery – you'll hear more of her in the coming years I am very sure'.

The Grosse Gewächse, in theory Germany's finest dry wines, will be officially shown to the media in Wiesbaden at the end of next month. Our own Michael Schmidt will of course be there, hard at work at the tasting tables on your behalf.

Purple Pagers can read about the enthusiasm of one Purple German wine enthusiast, Miran Kegl, for Keller's 2012s, especially the Kabinett made from the Hipping vineyard, in this thread on our Members' forum.