A few weeks ago, I received the following email from Heinz Gundlach, the sixth generation winemaker of Weingut Gundlach, est 1825, and great-great-great-great-great nephew of Jacob Gundlach, founder of Gundlach Bundschu Winery:
My Name is Heinz Gundlach, I am a winemaker with my own winery in the middle of Germany, right next to the Rhine Valley, established in 1825. One of our ancestors, Jacob Gundlach, was a winemaker too and he emigrated to America in 1856, to take german and french grapes over the ocean, to set up an own winery and to plant the grapes in Sonoma Valley. So our roots are more or less from the same origins. Our winery is still in the same Family Tradition meanwhile with me as the leader and winemaker.
At the beginning of May 2009 my daughter and I are going on a short trip to San Francisco, and on this occasion it would be fine to visit your winery in Sonoma Valley. Please let us know if this is possible.
Surprise is an understatement. We knew Jacob's father had made wine and beer, but we had no knowledge of this distant cousin or his winery. We've long joked that there are no Gundlachs left, that once Charles Bundschu married Jacob's daughter, the Bundschu genes took over the family tree. So we were pretty excited to meet our first Gundlach family.
My whole life, I've known the few photos we have of Jacob Gundlach - the deep set eyes, arrow-straight nose, full beard and severe countenance. Meeting Heinz was a bit like seeing a ghost - same eyes, same nose, but with a broad smile. His blonde daughter Sarah would easily fit in a Bundschu family photo. My dad and I spent a whole day last week showing Heinz and Sarah around Rhinefarm and learning about the wines and history of our German family, becoming progressively more amazed. Six generations on both sides of the family, still farming grapes, making small-lot, hand-crafted wines on two continents. Incredible.
Jim & Jeff Bundschu, Sarah & Heinz Gundlach
