Hallgarten, a little village within the wine area „Rheingau“ looks back onto 900 years of adventurous history. It is, where the blacksmith versed the devil’s horse, where the revolutionaries of 1848 met and discussed, where the only Tree of Liberty in the Rheingau was set up, where the beautiful “Hallgärtnerin” dwells. It is the home of Rheingau winemaking tradition.
Gently ascending curves through the vineyards of the Rheingau lead the road to Hallgarten. A look back displays one of the most beautiful outlooks over the Rhine Valley. In the Rheingau, the Rhine river has its only East-West bend creating the basis for the specific growing attributes of the region:
South-facing hillsides for optimal sunlight exposure and water from the Rhine, which reflects the sun, storing the heat within the grapes. To this adds a tender, cool breeze from the nearby Taunus mountains – important for the Riesling grapes which prosper in a moderate climate.
Ancient patrician timbered houses and wine cellars: anywhere in Hallgarten more than 900 years of history and winemaking tradition are alive. In oak barrels, in a small wine cellar located in the heart of the village – the BIBO RUNGE wines mature.
When we – Walter Bibo and Markus Bonsels – met for the first time, we quickly realised that the chemistry between us was right. And above all, we have the same idea of what distinguishes first-class wines. We love wines with a strong character that reflect the complexity of the grapes, are excellently developed and that are on the ball in every single respect. For this reason, as quality enthusiasts, we are united in the aim of continuing to pursue this path together.
Markus grew up in the countryside, on the Lower Rhine. After studying biotechnology, he worked for some of the world's largest corporations. But he never lost sight of one question: “What else do you want to achieve in life?”. And because doing is in his nature, Markus Bonsels decided after careful consideration to quit his job and forge a new path: he studied viticulture and oenology in Montpellier, Bordeaux and Geisenheim, accompanied by internships at top winemakers in Germany and France. While in the Rheingau undertaking research for his master's thesis he got to know Walter Bibo and the wines of BIBO RUNGE. And since the tasting of the 2016 vintage in September 2017, he continued the successful history of BIBO RUNGE wines together with Walter Bibo.
Do you have a choice when you are born into a family that has been committed to wine for centuries? But even if there were a choice, Walter, born and raised in Oestrich in the immediate vicinity of Hallgarten, has stayed on his pre-destined path anyway. After completing his studies in viticulture he worked for a long time as a cellar master with Joachim Heger in Ihringen am Kaiserstuhl. He then served as Director of the Schloss Reinhartshausen winery in Eltville for ten years. And from there, he finally set out to realise his very personal ideas of a wine at the end of 2013. With the wines from BIBO RUNGE.
After working as an HR manager in global enterprises for 20 years, Monika decided to help make her husband Markus Bonsels’ dream come true. After three years in the Moselle region and one year in France, wine-related trips to Spain, Italy and California, and around all of Germany’s wine-growing regions, she is delighted that the search for a vineyard has brought her and her husband to BIBO RUNGE in the Rheingau wine region. Seminars at the German Wine Institute (DWI), in-depth talks with Walter and Markus, and experiencing the day-to-day activities of a winemaker up close serve as the basis for your work at BIBO RUNGE. Being responsible for organisation of the business, she sometimes has to chivvy the men along.
Wine is a natural product and the question as to how much nature should be in a good wine is one that has to be answered by every winegrower. For every vintage, we ask ourselves: “What does a good wine need?” And we always come up with the same answer: “Good wine needs time.”
For us, this includes hand-picked grapes, so that only the best grapes are used in our wines. With very long maceration periods, we extract everything from these grapes and then press the mash gently and carefully in the basket press/ champagner press. We ferment each of our wines with natural yeasts in order to let them age as naturally as possible in oak barrels.
For us, the combination of maceration time, gentle pressing and slow ageing in wooden barrels is the foundation for top quality. That's how wines are created that have been given time to find themselves:
strong in character and self-confident, wines that you can simply enjoy.
For BIBO RUNGE, the path to a good wine is through the discovery of slowness and patience – with nature and our wines for a very special pleasure.
It’s not for nothing that we are partners of Slow Food.
In our Online-Shop you find our whole Riesling range:
After a long maceration time we ferment and store it for at least 10 months in a 2500 l oak barrel.
After 24h maceration time we ferment and store it for at least 12 months in a 1200 l oak barrel.
After 48 h maceration time we ferment and store it for at least 15 months in a 600 l oak barrel.
The taste of our 2013 vintage Riesling, first fermentation in oak barrels and a second traditional fermentation for 24 months in the bottle creates an outstanding sparkling wine.
Our Spätlese and Auslese are a result of a precise harvest and intensive grape selection. At the end of our harvest we select the botrytized grapes, which get a very gentle pressing.
Wir sind auch dieses Jahr wieder im Gault&Millau Weinguide Deutschland vertreten. In den letzten Jahren mit zwei schwarzen Trauben bewertet, konnten wir uns auf drei Trauben steigern. Wir freuen uns sehr!
Mehr LesenWalter Bibo wuchs im Rheingau auf, war später in Baden aktiv, wo er lange Jahre für das Weingut Dr. Heger arbeitete, anschließend war er dann einige Jahre Leiter von Schloss Reinhartshausen; Kai Runge stammt aus Baden. Zusammen gründetten sie Bibo & Runge, 2017 ist Runge ausgeschieden, dafür ist Markus Bonsels an Bord, der vom Niederrhein stammt. Sie verfügen über Weinberge in Walluf (Walkenberg, Berg Bildstock), Hallgarten (Jungfer, Würzgarten), Hattenheim (Schützenhaus), Oestrich (Doosberg, Lenchen, Klosterberg) sowie in Mittelheim (St. Nikolaus) und Winkel (Hasensprung). Die Weine werden auf einer traditionellen Korbpresse gekeltert, mit Maischestandzeiten von 14 bis 24 Stunden, die Moste werden…
Mehr LesenBonsels & Bibo KG
Eberbacher Str. 5
65375 Oestrich-Winkel
Phone: +49 (0)6723 99 86 900
