Lucashof
About Lucashof
In 1947, Nik Weis’ grandfather Nicolaus named his winery St. Urbans-Hof (St. Urbans Estate), after the patron saint of the winemakers, Saint Urban. Still today, the winery carries this name alongside with the owner’s name Nik Weis. Nik is the third generation of the family to make wine at the estate and the first to modernize its labelling in order to express that tradition. He changed the name of the winery from St. Urbans-Hof to Nik Weis – St. Urbans-Hof since family work and tradition are of such importance.
In our endeavors we give highest priority to maintaining the ecological balance of our vineyards, in the belief that as winemakers we must recognize and respect the fragile unity of viticulture and nature.
St. Urbans-Hof employs traditional methods of wine growing and winemaking which have been used in the Mosel and Saar Valleys for centuries, some of which date back to the Romans. For example, the vines are grown on the traditional single-post ‘Heart-binding’ trellis system, whereby the canes are tied in the shape of a heart.
For our family, wine has been at the heart of life for generations. Our deep respect for the traditions of our region remains, as ever, the guarantee for the quality of our wines.
Owned by Christine Lucas, sister to Nik Weis, this estate produces outstanding Riesling from important vineyard sites in the Pfalz. This estate was established over fifty years ago and has a much warmer climate than the Mosel with different soil. The resultant wines tend to be drier in style with a little bit higher alcohol levels. It is located in the Rhine valley and protected to the North and the West by the Hunsrueck Mountains. That’s what makes the climate there almost Mediterranean.
The soil is heavier and less stony than in the Mosel. They don’t have slate like in the Mosel, they have volcanic, glacial and river sediments. That’s why the wines are not as mineral but due to the warmer climate more full bodied than the wines in the Mosel. In general they have less acidity and more of a roundness. The flavors of their Rieslings are more on the peachy side than on the grapefruit side, as they are in Mosel wines. The current vintage release of this wine is 2012 and it is made from Organically farmed grapes!