One animal is ubiquitous at Pfalzhotel Asselheim: the snail. It symbolises the joy of slowing down, but is also a delicacy. The gourmet escargot come exclusively from our hotel-run snail farm "Zur Weinbergschnecke". Our Senior Director Stefan Charlier founded it in 2007. Since then, some 60,000 snails eat their way through thyme, leaf beets, lupins, sunflowers, spinach, canola, cabbage and other specialities every year - all completely organic.
We celebrate snail culture, and not only during our Sunday tours during the season. A snail cookbook, written by Stefan Charlier, provides a comprehensive portrait of the slow-food movement and numerous creative recipes. Snails of all shapes and sizes can be found at our snail fountain, a work of the renowned sculptor Theo Rörig, and in many of our works of art. A special Palatinate snail Cuvée and a Pinot Noir Schnecco Secco from Bernd Triebel's vineyard grace our wine list. Our Snail Queen, Alma I, attends many local and regional festivals, and of course the events at Pfalzhotel Asselheim, as ambassador of our snail farm.
He sees them as an allegory for deceleration: "The snail is a connoisseur. It doesn't gulp down its food. It chooses what it eats carefully and consumes it with pleasure." Would you like to find out more about these fascinating little animals? Much more information is available at www.pfalzschnecke.de. We hope you enjoy exploring our snail farm!