A top-class winery

Our guide Jupp has planned a tour for us today to the Van Volxem winery. In the late afternoon, 26 cyclists set off for Wiltingen, just eight kilometers away, where the noble winery, whose history dates back to 1743, is located. In 2019, Roman Niewodniczanski, whose great-grandfather comes from the family that owns the Bitburg brewery, acquired the estate and converted it. With a new concept, he has specialized in authentic Saar wines of the absolute highest class. There were only a few drops of the exquisite wines to taste, but in return you could enjoy an enchanting view from the stately property before heading back to the Leukbachtal on the other side of the Saar.

Here lies Saarburg, a small town of 7,000 inhabitants that is a real treat, as the Bavarians would say. I don't know of any other town in the world that has a waterfall thundering 20 metres down through its centre. From the iron bridge that spans the Leukbach and the two adjacent viewing platforms, you have a first-class view of the masses of water rushing down over rocky cascades. It's no wonder that there's hardly a place to sit in the adjacent cafés and restaurants. The spectacle is simply too tempting.

The power of water has been used since 1366, when the first mill was built. The Electoral Mill was built on its remains and converted into an electricity plant around 1900. Today the building houses the Amüseum with an exhibition of the most important crafts in Saarburg - tanners, bell founders, printers, shoemakers and boatmen - as well as the oldest turbine still in working order and an art gallery with interesting temporary exhibitions.

Because the weather forecasters have predicted rain for tomorrow, our traditional farewell meal was served today. A seasonal salad, spaghetti carbonara and vanilla ice cream with red fruit compote for dessert. These culinary delights make saying goodbye even harder than it already is. Luckily, we still have tomorrow, as a second helping, so to speak...