Jan Eymael | Pfeffingen Winery | Weindorf

"The days are very close to Wurstmarkt number 589 [2005]," says resident and winemaker Jan Eymael of Pfeffingen Winery. "In fact, the official website ticks off the days. It will be an opportunity to taste the wines of the 2004 vintage, an extraordinary year. It was a very good September, and the ideal weather resulted in good body, good acidity, and good aroma for the vintage." Eymael likens this vintage to the important 2001s and the revered wines of 1985. But if you're not headed there this year, don't worry:­ There will be another Wurstmarkt next year. And another. Then another.

Everywhere you look, people are smiling, and they're courteous to strangers passing by. Of course, you would be happy, too, if you were being served youthful, refreshing German white wine in half-liter containers called schoppen. In the local dialect, the glass is called a dubbe, a reference to the bumpy exterior of the clear glass. Make my dubbe a double, please.

This is one of Germany's warmest wine regions, making the fall nights quite comfortable. Residents in this part of the nation are experienced and upbeat about Americans, though it helps if you can speak German. The mood is festive, but families rule. Although consumption may be big, judgment is a tad bigger. Europeans have always surpassed Americans in the art of melding alcohol consumption with wholesome family life.

Strolling along a tree-lined pathway, I arrive at the wine tents and enormous seating areas. Deciding which wine to drink is easy - whatever is being served in the particular tent or simple stand that you find first. Then venture farther into the loud, festive pedestrian grid. You'll find large wine tents, as well as the traditional schubkärchler, a small wine stand with scrubbed wooden tables that show their age. There are 150 wine selections from over 50 producers within the Pfalz region. If you want to enjoy some finer wines in an intimate atmosphere, seek out the Weindorf, the wine village.