The majestic volcanic cone of the Kaiserstuhl (Emperor's Chair) mountain rising out of the Rhine plains is always an impressive sight.

If you travel from Königschaffhausen via the winding road towards Oberbergen, you will find yourself suddenly reminded of the lost worlds of Jules Verne as you come out of the forest. At any moment, you would expect giant lizards or even more exotic creatures stomping through the terraced vineyards of the Oberbergener Bassgeige site.

At first glance, at least, the results of the radical redevelopment and enclosure of land programmes are no longer very visible. A few hundred metres on the cone opens up to the south-west, providing a breathtaking panoramic view of the foothills of the Vosges mountains.

The region Kaiserstuhl-Tuniberg is situated in the south-west of Germany, between the Black Forest and the river Rhine which is here the border to France.

It is a good starting point for excursions to the Black Forest and the Alsace/Vosges mountains in France, and ideally situated for a stopover on journeys to Switzerland, Austria and the Mediterranean Sea.

The region is one of the warmest and sunniest parts of Germany, with an early start of springtime and mild and sunny autumns.

Practically the entire countryside all around the Kaiserstuhl consists of either forest or vineyards. Here in the warmest spot in Germany, grapes are basically guaranteed to achieve full ripeness every year, and there is a large number of dedicated winemakers and co-operatives who ensure that the quality of the wines is always at a very high level. Naturally, even in this privileged region there are a number of particularly exceptional vineyard sites that can regularly produces great wines.

The hottest vineyard site in Germany is the Ihringer Winklerberg vineyard, located at the south-western tip of the Kaiserstuhl. Here powerful, densely structured wines are produced on the terraced vineyards from vines grown on the volcanic soil. These wines are often not easily accessible.

The top class wines produced by Joachim Heger from Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris grapes require a year or two of bottle maturation to develop their potential. The Achkarrer Schlossberg site is located directly adjoining the Winklerberg, and provides a similar potential for quality. However, whereas the wines of the Winklerberg have a powerful mineral note, those of the Schlossberg are more full-bodied and monolithic. Here. too, it is Joachim Heger who produces the best results. The largest part of this site is in the hands of co-operative cellars, who rarely manage to bring out the full potential of the site in their wines. The other two top-class sites in the area are located in the commune of Oberrottweil.

It is a moot point to argue whether the densely structured, spicy wines of the Henkenberg are better than the full-bodied, supple and rich wines of the Eichberg. The soils of the Henkenberg have a stony structure of decomposed volcanic stone, while those of the Eichberg are grown on asoil that has a much finer-grained consistency, almost like that of ashes. Without a doubt the best producer here is Wolf-Dietrich Salwey, but the cellars of the Freiherr von Gleichenstein estate also regularly produce very good wines.

In recent years a large number of other producers have also regularly produced first-class wines, even where they do not have access to the top-ranking vineyard sites. The best of this group are Bercher in Burkheim, Johner in Bisachoffingen, Keller Reinhold and Cornelia Schneider 217 in Endingen.

The grape harvest in October is a unique experience for many visitors to the area.