I pitched the bones of this article to Decanter Magazine<\/em>, and then again to Club Oenologique<\/em>. I couldn\u2019t get these (UK-based) editors to bite \u2013 it was all \u201ctoo niche\u201d \u2013 so I decided to take matters into my own hands and publish a wine lover\u2019s travel guide to the Netherlands on my own website instead.<\/p>\n Editor\u2019s note: Decanter Magazine did eventually publish a short piece I wrote about where to taste Dutch wine in Amsterdam. What follows is the longer travel piece I would\u2019ve written had I had the word count.<\/em><\/p>\n The Netherlands\u2019 wine industry is very young, dating from the 1970s and starting out in Limburg. It began to boom in the early 2000s, and today there are vineyards in all 12 provinces and over 200 producers nationwide. Needless to say, they generally specialise in cool-climate grape varieties and hybrids, but global warming (the stonkingly hot summer we\u2019ve had in 2026 being a case in point) is starting to challenge those generalisations. If you\u2019d like to learn more beyond my nutshell summary, you can get an overview of the Dutch wine landscape here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Hardy Dutch grapevines. Photo: Rosie van der Elst<\/p>\n<\/div>\n When I first moved to the Netherlands 20 years ago, the quality of wine was (if I\u2019m honest) pretty abysmal. But that is very much no longer the case, and if you\u2019ve not tried Dutch wine in a few years I urge you to give it another shot. I\u2019ve tasted Limburg Pinot Noirs that can give Ahr Valley Sp\u00e4tburgunder a run for its money, and sparkling wines that taste like the new Champagne (or at any rate, the new English sparkling). If you\u2019re in Amsterdam, you can book a Dutch wine tasting<\/a>, but if you love a wine-led weekend away, why not tour the Netherlands, vineyard by vineyard<\/a>, tasting as you go?<\/p>\n With the largest concentration of vineyards, the Netherlands\u2019 southernmost province of Limburg is the most logical place to start exploring Dutch wines. It also has hills! If you plan to visit a few of these wineries and don\u2019t want to drive (sensible), I suggest renting an e-bike<\/a>. South Limburg also offers so-called Routes des Vins<\/a> (perhaps in French due to the province\u2019s proximity to its Belgian neighbours), which are helpful itineraries through Dutch wine country.<\/p>\n Planting vines since the 1970s and now with three generations of winemakers working together, Apostelhoeve<\/a> is the<\/em> pioneer of Dutch wine \u2013 and it shows in both the quality of the wines and their ubiquity (if you\u2019ve only drunk one Dutch wine, it likely came from Apostelhoeve). Gilbert Hulst\u2019s grandfather started out with cool-climate grape varieties like Auxerrois and Riesling, but the family has subsequently moved these vines to less sunny sites, reserving the south-facing slopes for grapes like Pinot Gris, Viognier and Chardonnay. As well as the rolling vineyards, touring Apostelhoeve takes in the sparkling-clean, high-tech facilities (wine geeks like me will be enthralled by their state-of-the-art filtration machine) plus the atmospheric courtyard and tasting area.<\/p>\n Third-generation winemaker Gilbert Hulst at Apostelhoeve<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Guided tours last 1.5 hours and include a tasting of three wines, accompanied by ham and cheese. Visits are available year-round by appointment and cost a minimum of \u20ac300 for groups of up to 12 (unfortunately, there\u2019s no possibility to join a group tour as an individual at this point).<\/p>\n While Apostelhoeve may be the pioneer of Dutch whites, Domein Holset\u2019s winemaker Kirsten Abels is the clear expert when it comes to Dutch sparkling. I\u2019ve tried several of Holset\u2019s traditional-method sparkling wines, and they certainly give Nyetimber a run for its money. Perhaps my favourite so far has been the \u201cDame\u201d Brut Nature 2021: an elegant, complex, Chardonnay-based bubble that\u2019s both bone-dry and as delicious as a pear and vanilla sponge.<\/p>\n Bubbles with a view at Holset<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Holset\u2019s estate is on the opposite side of South Limburg from Apostelhoeve (Holset is in the southeast rather than southwest), and is home to another delightful courtyard plus a boutique hotel which looks like an idyllic place to stay. They offer guided tours in Dutch at various times of day depending on the season (check Holset\u2019s website<\/a> for details) from \u20ac32.50 per person. But you can also just stop by the shop and tasting room during opening hours and order a glass to taste or a bottle to share.<\/p>\n Just a short bike ride from Holset, Wijngaard St Martinus<\/a> is reported to be the oldest red wine producer in the Netherlands (and competes with Apostelhoeve in terms of size). What differentiates St Martinus is Stan Beurskens\u2019 focus on sustainability and innovation: since 2014 he\u2019s run his own Wijnkenniscentrum<\/em> (wine knowledge centre) alongside the vineyard, partnering with universities like Wageningen to trial new grape varieties and techniques aimed at cutting out systemic pesticides.<\/p>\n Tours run Wednesday to Sunday at 12.30 and 15:00, last about two hours, and include a three-glass tasting paired with regional snacks (from \u20ac35 per person). Whether you want to take a tour or just taste a glass or two on the premises, be sure to make a reservation. St Martinus is well-known and gets very busy, especially during the holiday season. (We learned this the hard way.)<\/p>\n Around 12 kilometres from St Martinus, Wijngoed Fromberg<\/a> has none of the crowds but all of the charm. It\u2019s a much smaller operation, but no reservations are needed and there\u2019s a lovely terrace \u2013 canopied in trees \u2013 that\u2019s ideally suited to drinking wine on a hot day. The tasting setup works well: you can order a flight of three sparkling or three still wines, allowing you to taste more than if you were to order individual glasses. And while the quality of the wines is not as high as those from the heavy-hitters I\u2019ve mentioned so far, Fromberg does give you an opportunity to taste some lesser-known grapes like Bacchus and Reichensteiner. Plus, their Brut Pinot Noir (sparkling ros\u00e9) is very drinkable.<\/p>\n A sparkling flight at Wijngoed Fromberg<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Zeeland is the Netherlands\u2019 southwest coastal province, made up of several small islands and the odd peninsula. It benefits from the maritime breezes that give all coastal wines a lift, and is home to one of the country\u2019s most famous wineries.<\/p>\n De Kleine Schorre<\/a> isn\u2019t just famous by Dutch standards \u2013 their wines are served to international travellers on KLM\u2019s business class flights. The vineyards are on the island of Schouwen-Duiveland, growing Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Rivaner and Auxerrois grapes, and the wines are all about what they call \u201cZeeuwse Zilte Zaligheden\u201d \u2013 the sea-salt minerality that this stretch of coast is known for.<\/p>\n Guided tours run every Wednesday at 15:00 from mid-May to mid-September for just \u20ac7.95 per person. Groups of ten or more can book a tour year-round, often paired with a multi-glass tasting menu at the on-site proeflokaal<\/em>, matched with Zeeland oysters, cheese and smoked fish. If you want to make a weekend of it, they even have wine-barrel-shaped tiny houses and a campsite on premises.<\/p>\n One of the largest Dutch provinces, Brabant is further inland \u2013 sandwiched between Limburg to the east and Zeeland to the west. But like the other two provinces, it\u2019s relatively far south \u2013 meaning it\u2019s likely to be a couple of degrees warmer than the north of the country.<\/p>\n Bas Klerx and Laura de Hollander founded Wijngoed Wolf<\/a> in 2016 after several years learning the ropes in Provence, and now farm 5.5 hectares biodynamically and organically \u2013 still a rarity for Dutch wine. Alongside classic grapes like Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris, they grow hardier hybrids like Souvignier Gris and Johanniter. In parallel, their wines range from classic still whites and traditional-method sparkling to more experimental styles: zesty pet-nats (ancestral-method sparkling) and amphora-fermented, skin-contact whites (aka orange wines).<\/p>\n Walking through the vineyards with Bas at Wijngoed Wolf. Photo: Rosie van der Elst<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Tours and tastings run every Saturday afternoon, year-round, but book up around three months ahead, so plan early. If you\u2019re out of luck, you can always stop by their on-site shop on Fridays and Saturdays between 11:00 and 17:00.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re staying (or living) in Amsterdam and want to try Dutch wine without leaving Noord-Holland, there are a couple of options worth your time. (As well as booking a tasting with me in Amsterdam<\/a>, of course!)<\/p>\n Around a 30-minute drive from Amsterdam, you\u2019ll reach Wijngaard Zonnestraal<\/a> on the outskirts of Hilversum. Given that Zonnestraal has just under a hectare of vines at present, the winemakers have opted for some rather unique blends with the help of Chateau Amsterdam<\/a>. A couple of examples do a better job of explaining the concept than I can: the \u201cCuv\u00e9e Chardonnay\u201d is a blend of Chardonnay from Germany with Zonnestraal\u2019s own Solaris, Johanniter and Souvignier Gris. The \u201cCuv\u00e9e Syrah\u201d is a blend of Syrah from the Languedoc with Zonnestraal\u2019s Cabaret Noir (plus a touch of Grenache). You get the idea! In some vintages, they\u2019ve been even more ambitious: creating an experimental \u201cSuper Tuscan\u201d (a Tuscan-Dutch mashup) and a \u201cKleine Bordeaux\u201d (Pomerol Merlot meets Dutch Cab Noir) under their Gooisch Bloed<\/em> range. Inspired!<\/p>\n Annemarie \u2013 viticulturist and sales\/events manager at Zonnestraal<\/p>\n<\/div>\n To visit Wijngaard Zonnestraal, your best bet is to stop by on a Friday or Sunday afternoon for a wine tasting or a picnic between the vines. They welcome visitors between March and October, but exact opening days and times are weather dependent (all space is outdoors) so check their website<\/a>, Google listing or call ahead.<\/p>\n I first visited Amsteltuin<\/a> \u2013 in Amstelveen, immediately south of Amsterdam \u2013 for a wedding of some close friends. It made a beautiful wedding venue, but at the time I didn\u2019t know much about Dutch wines. Later research revealed that Amsteltuin is growing hardy hybrids \u2013 Johanniter, Solaris and Souvignier Gris for the whites, Cabernet Cortis and Pinotin for the reds and ros\u00e9s \u2013 from vineyards that are (unbelievably) well below sea level.<\/p>\n Amsteltuin is open on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays during the summer for tours and tastings (from \u20ac17.50 per person, including two wines to taste), but you can also book lunch or high wine in the garden. The wines may not be as high in quality as some others on this list, but the location is certainly worth a visit.<\/p>\n Skipping past a few provinces, we come to Friesland in the very north of the Netherlands. The landscape is flat and covered in green meadows, which isn\u2019t immediately what you\u2019d expect to see in a wine region. But you\u2019d be surprised!<\/p>\n The northernmost vineyard in the country, Wijngaard de Frysling<\/a> offers tours and tastings during the summer months (without sounding like a broken record, these are extremely popular so book well in advance). But it\u2019s also possible to stop by, meander through the vines and pick up a bottle or two from the shop. There are several sparklings on offer, from Brut Nature to Brut (which refers to sweetness level), both white and ros\u00e9, and both traditional (Champagne) method and tank (Prosecco) method. Frysling also makes white, ros\u00e9 and red still wines from various hybrid grapes, including all the usual suspects: Solaris, Souvignier Gris, Cabernet Cortis and Pinotin.<\/p>\n Among the vines at Frysling<\/p>\n<\/div>\n There\u2019s lots to taste, but my top recommendation goes to Frysling\u2019s Br\u00fbswyn<\/em>: an award-winning sparkling Johanniter that spends 30 months ageing on its lees to combine crisp apple and pear flavours with soft brioche and a creamy mousse.<\/p>\n Further south, close to the border with Flevoland, you\u2019ll find\u00a0Wijndomein de Heideplaats<\/a>\u00a0offering a smaller selection of wines but plenty of rural charm. On a sunny day, surrounded by lavender bushes, de Heideplaats feels like a little slice of Provence. They also have a\u00a0bed & breakfast<\/a>, which looks like a relaxing place to stay in Friesland (although I didn\u2019t get to experience it myself).<\/p>\n Outside the barn at de Heideplaats<\/p>\n<\/div>\n On arrival at the barn, you can pick up a map and information and take a self-guided tour of the vineyards before stopping for a drink on the terrace. Their \u201cVespers\u201d white wine is a citrussy, floral blend that\u2019s more full-bodied than you\u2019d expect from the cool, northerly region.<\/p>\n Looking for more wine in the Netherlands? I\u2019ve written an <\/em>introduction to Dutch wine here<\/em><\/a>, and I even offer <\/em>wine tasting events in Amsterdam<\/em><\/a>!<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I pitched the bones of this article to Decanter Magazine, and then again to Club Oenologique. I couldn\u2019t get these (UK-based) editors to bite \u2013 it was all \u201ctoo niche\u201d \u2013 so I decided to take matters into my own hands and publish a wine lover\u2019s travel guide to the Netherlands on my own website […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7041903,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11765],"tags":[14497,24104,57228,11288],"dealstore":[],"offerexpiration":[],"class_list":["post-7041902","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-amsterdam","tag-netherlands","tag-visiting","tag-wineries","tag-worth"],"yoast_head":"\nDutch wine in a nutshell<\/h2>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.amsterdamfoodie.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Rosie_van_der_Elst_Wijngoed_Wolf-5-500x333.jpg\")
<\/p>\nWineries in Limburg<\/h2>\n
Apostelhoeve<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.amsterdamfoodie.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Apostelhoeve-Limburg-wine-715x900.jpg\")
<\/p>\nDomein Holset<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.amsterdamfoodie.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Domein-Holset-Limburg-winery-654x900.jpg\")
<\/p>\nWijngaard St Martinus<\/h3>\n
Wijngoed Fromberg<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.amsterdamfoodie.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Wijngoed-Fromberg-800x786.jpg\")
<\/p>\nZeeland wines<\/h2>\n
De Kleine Schorre<\/h3>\n
Brabant wines<\/h2>\n
Wijngoed Wolf<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.amsterdamfoodie.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Rosie_van_der_Elst_Wijngoed_Wolf-8-713x900.jpg\")
<\/p>\nVineyards near Amsterdam<\/h2>\n
Wijngaard Zonnestraal<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.amsterdamfoodie.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Wijngaard-Zonnestraal-Holland-wine-719x900.jpg\")
<\/p>\nAmsteltuin<\/h3>\n
Wineries in Friesland<\/h2>\n
Frysling<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.amsterdamfoodie.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Frysling-vineyards-800x450.jpg\")
<\/p>\nWijndomein de Heideplaats<\/h3>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.amsterdamfoodie.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Wijndomein-de-Heideplaats-Friesland-winery-800x450.jpg\")
<\/p>\n