Zeller Schwarze Katz | Black Cat Wine

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Black Cat Wine: The Zeller Schwarze Katz Legend

Romans are credited for the development of viniculture in ancient Germany and were responsible for establishing a winemaking region in the village of Zell, along the Mosel River. In winery circles the arched black cat is a well-known icon, often seen on the labels of German wines produced in this region. According to legend, a black cat fiercely guarded a barrel of Zeller wine that was cellared alongside many other wine barrels. Locals and wine merchants concluded that the Zeller wine was special. Riesling-blend Zeller Schwarze Katz wines offer value and quality at a reasonable price. The wines are fairly popular in Germany and are also exported to many markets throughout the world.

Zeller Schwarze Katz

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White Wine from Zell an der Mosel

A Village in Germany

type=textThe village of Zell is located on the Mosel River near the French border. Although many wines are produced in this region, Zeller Schwarze Katz, or "black cat" wines are the most famous. A Zeller Schwarze Katz wine is easy to spot—just look for a playful, often arched black cat on the wine label. Some of the Zeller Schwarze Katz wines I've purchased have featured a black cat ornament hanging on the neck of the bottle. The Riesling-blend wine is light, crisp and refreshing. Enjoy it as the Germans do, as an everyday wine with the main mid-day meal, during weekend family gatherings, or in the evening paired with light foods. Most people associate Germany with beer, but the German wine industry is large and highly successful worldwide.

Zeller Schwarze Katz Vintage Wine Label

Zeller Schwarze Katz | Black Cat Wine

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Zell an der Mosel

A Few Facts Courtesy of Wikipedia

type=textZell an der Mosel is a municipality in the district Cochem-Zell, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Zell is the seat of the Verbandsgemeinde ("collective municipality") Zell. Zell is renowned for its viticulture. The Riesling grape is the traditional grape grown in the region. The Lage Zeller Schwarze Katz has gained supraregional publicity. The situation in the German wine region Mosel as well as the Moselle River are basis for the tourism, which is also fundamental for the Zell economy.

Zeller Schwartze Katz

Zell-Merl, Mosel Valley, Rheinland-Pfalz

Home of Zeller Schwarze Katz Wines in Germany

Zell Wine Region

The German village of Zell is well known for its reasonably priced, everyday white Riesling wines, including Zeller Schwarze Katz.

Zeller Schwarze Katz

Zeller Schwarze Katz 2008 Riesling Wine Label

Zeller Schwarze Katz | Black Cat Wine

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Famous Schwarze Cat

The black cat is typically shown with its back arched, and has become an internationally known marketing logo for wines produced in the Zell region.

Zeller Schwarze Katz

Black Cat Wine Bottle Stopper

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Short Hair Black Cat Wine Bottle Stopper - CTB49

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Product Description: Your favorite cat will be the toast of the town on this pewter-base, cork bottle stopper, designed to fit any standard bottle. Stopper comes with it's own velvet drawstring pouch -- ideal for gift giving!
Size: Approximately 3 to 3 1/2" tall.

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Zeller Schwarze Katz Statue in Zell 

Black Cat Tiny Angel Christmas Ornament

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BLACK CAT MINIATURE Angel Christmas Ornament New Resin CTA49

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Product Features: Hand painted ornament, perfect size for hanging on Christmas tree, made of polyresin. All Angels are individually boxed. Many other breeds available.

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Zeller Schwarze Katz Vineyards in Germany 

Lineup of Zeller Schwarze Katz Bottles

Here are a Few of the Zeller Schwarze Katz Bottles I've Collected

Legend of the Black Cat

As the story goes, a black housecat aggressively guarded a barrel of Zeller wine that was cellared with many other wine barrels. The Zeller wine was presumed to be special.

Zeller Schwarze Katz

2012 Black Cat Calendar

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Black Cats 2012 Calendar

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Product Description: The twelve dazzling full-color photographs in this wall calendar typify all that is beautiful and mysterious about black cats. Enjoy their silken fur and enchanting gaze all year long! The large format features daily grids that provide ample room for recording appointments, birthdays and jotting personal reminders. Also includes four bonus months of September through December 2010.

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Zeller Schwarze Katz Vintage Crockery Bottle 

Zeller Schwarze Katz on eBay

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Zeller Schwarze Katz

The popular Riesling-blend wine is value priced and suitable for everyday drinking. Germans typically enjoy it during their mid-day meals and at weekend family gatherings.

Zeller Schwarze Katz

Zeller Schwarze Katz is the Cat's Pajamas!

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The Cat's Pajamas Wasabi Green Sushi Women's Cotton Pajama medium

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Product Description: The Cat's Pajamas proudly manufactures all of their sleepwear right here in the United States. This roomy, comfortable pajama will be with you for years to come. Pajama pant has a drawstring in the front and elastic in the back for a perfect fit every time.

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Guarding Barrels of Zeller Schwarze Katz 

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Willkommen

Have You Tried Zeller Schwarze Katz Wine?

Zeller Schwarze Katz

  • notimetoulouse May 7, 2012 @ 11:36 am | delete
    Great Lens Kim and what a coincidence! I once spent a grape picking season in Zell (1969 - gulp!) working for two vineyards one of which was the Black Kat and I had a fantastic time.
    Just a tip for everyone out there, and something you can amaze your friends with at parties.... If you pick up a bottle of Mosel or Rhein wine, you will see what is known as the APR number somewhere on the label.
    It's a great way to see what the standard of the wine is inside the bottle. When the pickers take their first basket up the vine slopes to fill it, they all go for the biggest and juiciest grapes they can find. Once their basket is filled, they will go back down to the press area, the basket is tagged, and the grapes tipped in ready for pressing.
    Up they go again on trip number two, and on their second walk, they pick the next biggest, and so on, trip after trip until the harvest is in.
    The significance of the APR number??
    Pop back up to Kims large 2008 label above this and look at the APR.
    Forget all the stuff at the beginning, thats just used to code up the vineyard, its that last two sequences you are looking at...
    In this case its 018 09.
    This means that the grapes in this bottle came from the 18th pickers walk of the 09 harvest.
    Not as good as an 001 or 002, but you'll come across bottles with 356 09 on them, and you can judge the quality from that.
    Hope this helped.
  • KimGiancaterino May 8, 2012 @ 6:02 pm | delete
    Thank you! I have a whole shelf of Zeller Schwarze Katz wines and will check the APR numbers. The wines are usually so-so. I collect them for the labels.
  • JoyfulReviewer Mar 9, 2012 @ 10:07 pm | delete
    That black cat bottle stopper would make the perfect pairing with black cat wine.
  • Carl Nov 20, 2011 @ 1:44 pm | delete
    I enjoyed Zeller Schwarze Katz while visiting friends who have an "AnTick" store in Zell. While many enjoy larger towns (such as Cochem, a few miles to the north with its large castle), I find small towns with fewer tourists more enjoyable. One afternoon we sat a table outside a nearby puband, since the wine from the last picking was still fermenting and the Riesling grapes were not yet ready to be picked, we enjoyed Federweisser and Zweibelkuchn in the afternoon. We then walked a short distance on the cobblestone street to an evening wine festival where we joined local merchants and residents to enoy bratwurst, potato salad, sauerkraut and Zeller Schwarze Kaze while a musician played. A good introduction to the town is at www.zellmosel.de. As with some other wines we've tasted in their own localities, the wine lost some of its atmosphere when enjoyed at home but it's still our favorite riesling.
  • imolaK Sep 3, 2011 @ 4:44 am | delete
    Thank you for sharing these informations with us.Blessed!
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Zeller Schwarze Katz | Black Cat Wine

KimGiancaterino's Bio

Zeller Schwarze Katz | Black Cat Wine was created by Kim Giancaterino on August 3, 2010. This Squidoo page is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.

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