Winemakers:  Hulst Family (Hugo, Mathieu, Julka, Robin, Gilbert)
Growing:  Riesling, Pinot Gris, Auxerrois, Müller-Thurgau, Viognier
Established:  1970
Bottles:  80,000
Region:  Mergelland PDO, Netherlands

In 1970, Hugo Hulst was shown a map from the 1600s indicating the sizable presence of grapevines in Limburg’s Jeker Valley.

Today, just ten minutes outside of Maastricht, it’s the site of the Netherland’s oldest, largest, and most prominent vineyard, Wijngaard Apostelhoeve.

Second-generation winemaker Mathieu Hulst now runs the state-of-the-art production with a focus on four white grapes: Riesling, Auxerrois, Müller Thurgau, and Pinot Gris.

The subsoil is 80% marl, a mixture of clay and limestone that’s also found in Champagne. The 2018 vintage, with its all-time high temperatures and two-fold increase in production, will be one for the record books.

In 2020, de Apostelhoeve won 3 Gold Medals at Le Mondial Des Vins Blancs Strasbourg 2020 for their Cuvee XII 2019, Pinot Gris 2019 and Riesling 2019. They were also named Producer of the Year by the Dutch wine magazine, Perswijn.

Visit the Wijngaard Apostelhoeve website here.