The winery in the municipality of Kallstadt in the German wine-growing region of Pfalz was founded around 1700 by the Ruprecht family. Due to female succession, the names Ruprecht and later Koehler were lost. In 1969, the estate was taken over by Otto Philippi. His son Bernd Philippi (1951-2023) worked internationally as a wine consultant for many years before taking over the business from his father in 1986. The "Weincastell" hotel is attached. Together with Werner Näkel (Meyer-Näkel on the Ahr) and Bernhard Breuer (Georg Breuer in the Rheingau), the "Quinta da Carvalhosa" winery was founded in Portugal's Douro Valley in 2000. The vineyards in the Palatinate cover 12.5 hectares of vineyards in the Kallstadt single vineyard sites Kronenberg, Saumagen and Steinacker. They are mainly planted with the white wine varieties Riesling, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay, Gewürztraminer, Scheurebe, Kerner and Rieslaner, as well as the red wine varieties Pinot Noir, Dornfelder and Cabernet Sauvignon.
The wines ferment without exception in wooden bar rels - partly in traditional quarter and half barrels, partly in barriques using natural yeasts. The small casks, in combination with the sharp must pre-clarification and the sluggish natural yeasts, cause a very slow spontaneous fermentation, which can take up to nine months for the top Rieslings from the Saumagen. After fermentation, the wines mature for a long time on the fine lees. This traditional ageing process results in long-lived wines. The Pinot Noirs are matured in barriques. Noble sweet wines are also produced, such as the "Elysium". The winery is a member of the VDP (Verband Deutscher Prädikatsweingüter).
