Malibu Van Fans almond blossom tour
Start of the season in the Palatinate.
In search of spring, the Malibu Van Fans started this year’s group meeting season for the first time with an “Almond Blossom Tour” to the Palatinate from 12-15 March. Thanks to the mild weather of the preceding weeks, the almond trees on the southern Palatinate Wine Route were already in full bloom and it was clear from the start that the tour would live up to its name.
In addition to the almond trees, the Palatinate naturally also includes wine. This was one of the reasons why the Geiger winery’s car park in Dierbach was a suitable location for the 34 vehicles from all over Germany, Luxembourg and Belgium.
In rather unfriendly weather, the winery was all the more hospitable and spontaneously made its conservatory available to us. Without further ado, a self-catering buffet was organised, which culminated in a dessert speciality that has achieved cult status in the group: the “Palatinate oyster”, a chocolate marshmallow that is heated in the microwave until it bursts and then poured with homemade egg liqueur.
On Thursday, the actual start of the meeting, the place filled up steadily over the course of the day and in the evening there was a hearty Palatinate buffet in the winery’s “Feier-Scheier”, in keeping with the motto of the meeting.
The highlight of the event was a trip on a vintage bus. The originally planned 45-seater “Büssing” from 1969 could not meet the great demand and was therefore supplemented by two charming VW Bullies. So we travelled in convoy with three vintage cars along the Palatinate Wine Route – with so much retro feeling, you almost wanted to look for a pair of flared trousers! The nostalgic convoy travelled via the German Wine Gate in Schweigen-Rechtenbach to Wissembourg in Alsace. After a cultural tour through the old town with two very friendly and competent city guides, another stop at an original Alsatian tarte flambée house was not only in proper style, but also well deserved.
Saturday was all about wine. Dieter Geiger gave us an entertaining tour of the hallowed halls of his winery with great expertise and a good dose of Palatinate lingo. Afterwards, we went on a short hike through the vineyards and as soon as we got back, the first barbecue sausages were ready. But here, too, the group’s new cult dessert was a must. That’s why a microwave was quickly added to the outdoor kitchen. The warm eggnog chocolate kisses were the ultimate sweet counterpart to the savoury sausages and, together with the subsequent dinner in the restaurant on the square, formed a solid basis for the subsequent wine tasting.
The grape juices preferred in the wine tasting were delivered “free Malibu” to the van on Sunday morning by Mr Geiger in the winery’s Ape. For most of them, it was then time to say goodbye and hit the road. However, the crews of six vehicles decided that you don’t always have to stop when it’s at its best and simply extended the meeting until Monday. So there was one last cosy evening together in a small group until everyone finally set off on their journey home or onwards, comforted by the knowledge that the next meeting will not be long in coming.
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