Wine Knowledge
In northern Germany there is a " cruel" custom called Easter fires . At temperatures just above zero, you are roasted from the front and frozen from the back while you desperately nibble on a bland piece of dough with a black crust that is glorified as stick bread.
Well, we in Weyher also have a cruel custom, but it's more fun: The Fermenters . Never heard of it?
It is a Palatinate tradition that is hundreds of years old: From Maundy Thursday until early Easter morning (when, as we know, Jesus was resurrected), all church bells are turned off. However, it is well known that the bell (apart from the sun) was the only way people could tell time back then. To ensure that the people of the Palatinate didn't run around completely out of their minds and timeless over the Easter holidays, the Gärrer came as a kind of bell replacement! They made noises with a wooden ratchet and called out the time loudly. They also announced when it was time to go to church and when people should go to pray.
