Ribeauvillé: The Ultimate Day Trip—Wine Caves, Castle Views, and French Culinary Delights

At a Glance

• Duration: Two separate day trips
• Home Base: Colmar, France
• Top Day Trip: Ribeauvillé, France
• Memorable Moment: The cool factor of seeing all the surrounding wine villages and vineyards spread out like a map from the ruins of the three medieval castles.‍
• Overall Vibe: Historically rich, wine-centric, colorful, and completely worth revisiting to finish the adventure.

This Town is Special Because...

Ribeauvillé is an absolute must-see on the Alsace Wine Route. While staying in Colmar, we realized this village offered everything we wanted: stunning vineyards, a visible history, and, most importantly, exceptional wine tasting. This town proved so irresistible that we actually visited it twice!

Dating back to the Middle Ages, Ribeauvillé has a rich wine making history. The town sits on a geological fault that has created an incredibly diverse mix of soils, allowing for the production of exceptional white wines. It is particularly renowned for its three Grand Crus—Geisberg (mainly growing Riesling), Kirchberg of Ribeauvillé, and Osterberg—which are the source of some of the region's finest vintages.

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Our Ribeauvillé Experience: The Day-to-Day

Day 1: Rain, Wine, and Marvel

Our first trip to Ribeauvillé was on a less-than-sunny day. We had a slightly rocky start, missing our planned bus, so we opted for a quick Uber ride to get to the village by 9 a.m. After a necessary cappuccino and quiche, we decided to focus on what Alsace does best: wine!

• Wine Tasting Adventures: Ribeauvillé is a wine lover’s dream. We visited three distinct wineries:

• Domain Trimbach: I had reached out for a tasting appointment in early August, as a tasting appointment was necessary, but I didn't see the email declining it, which had been sent the day before. They had been closed for most of August due to the harvest and were behind on emails. I took a chance and dropped in as soon as their tasting room opened. We worked out what had happened with our communication and I thought we were going to have to leave. However, the Tasting Room Host was very gracious and gave us a quick tasting at the bar, while he was setting up for the day’s appointments. He did not shortchange us at all on providing information and spending time with us. He explained all their wines were made in exactly the same way, with only the different vineyards and their terroir being the difference. He also mentioned that Alsace has the second most diverse soil types in the world, after Napa Valley. We purchased a Riesling and a few bottles of their Pinot Noir. We talked about the     different wines and the labels they are currently exporting to the US. They also shared a handy guide on the cost of shipping to the US. Note: the cost is the shipping for the number of bottles or cases, plus the cost of the wines themselves minus the 20% VAT since that is included in the shipping cost.

• Louis Sipp: We walked right into Louis Sipp and had a great tasting, which was a vintage lineup of their different wines. The     highlight was the Pinot Noir Grossman, which was unfortunately sold out. We loved their 2016 Grand Cru Riesling, and purchased a bottle.
• Caves de Ribeauville: This is a cooperative of 40 different wine growers, and you can taste as many wines as you like for free. The prices here were amazing, and we found many great wines in the €9-€20 per bottle range. It was fascinating to see how the cooperative works and to learn about the three Grand Cru sites in the area. We tried a few of the wines from Kirchbergn and Osterberg Crus.
• Lunch at La Roselle: As the rain continued, we ducked across the  street from Caves de Ribeauville, into La Roselle for an unexpected gem of  a lunch spot. It's a pizza joint that’s a complete tribute to Marvel and DC comics, with figurines everywhere. The Star Wars-themed bathroom was a hilarious surprise—we loved it!

Sightseeing and Historic Colors:

After lunch, we took a walk through the town to see the historic sites on the tourist map, including the Butchers Tower, the Butchers House, and the Tanners. We learned that the color of the half-timbered houses historically corresponded to the professions of the inhabitants While the specific colors could vary slightly, here are some common associations:

• Yellow: Often represented bakers or farmers.
• Blue: Was the color for fishermen, potters, or weavers.
• Red: Was typically used by butchers or winemakers.
• Green: Was for carpenters, coopers (barrel makers), or other woodworkers.

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Day 2: Conquering the Castles and a Leisurely Lunch

We left the first day with one piece of unfinished business: the iconic hike to the three castles. We walked up to the first switchback, but the rain was making the path slippery so we decided to proceed back to town. We felt we would regret skipping it, so on the next sunny day, we went back!

• The Hike to the Three Castles: This was the whole point of our     return, and it was glorious! The three castles—Château  de Saint-Ulrich, Château de Girsberg, and Château du Haut-Ribeaupierre—are the town's most prominent landmarks. The steep, three-hour round trip path was worth every step. The real "cool factor" was reaching the top and seeing the entire region spread out below us—all the colorful wine villages and endless vineyards looked like a giant map.

• A Perfect Apéritif and Lunch: After the hike, we were hungry and ready for some serious relaxation. We picked up those famous, colorful macaroon cookies we'd been eyeing and found a sunny spot at a restaurant called Brasserie de la Poste, located on the     main street, to people-watch. Since they weren't serving lunch yet, we settled in with a glass of wine for a perfect French apéritif. For lunch, I had a delicious quiche and salad, but Tom's lightly breaded, pan-fried fish and chips was so good he     declared it one of his best meals of the trip!

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What We Loved (and Didn't)

We loved that Ribeauvillé had a vibrant energy without feeling overwhelmed by visitors, which made it a joy to explore. The wines we tasted were exceptional, and we were so glad we returned on a sunny day to complete the hike—the view from the castles was unforgettable! The feeling of success after finishing the hike and rewarding ourselves with a long, relaxed lunch was the perfect payoff.

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