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View into the Ice Cellar
Today’s Dossenheimer Landstrasse is part of the old carriageway that was built north of the Neckar in 1784. In the 19th century it quickly developed into a main road, and numerous town houses and inns were built along it.
One of these inns was called “Zur Bierquelle” (The Beer Fountain), which was opened by the owner and brewer Peter Gilbert on 10th August 1878.
Dossenheimer Landstrasse around 1900 with the freight train line to Weinheim built in 1890.
On the left you can see the open mill stream before it was culverted. Q.: TA Hh Nr. 250
Peter Gilbert built the property above a vaulted cellar that was four metres below ground level. Natural ice blocks harvested in winter were stored here and used throughout the year to cool the beer brewed on the premises and served here and in another nearby inn.
„The Beer Fountain“ Inn (Photo: Tiefburg archives)
In 1906 Peter Gilbert built mansard rooms in the attic to accommodate travellers passing through.
Georg Michael Lenz bought the property in 1927 and ran the inn until he died in 1959. His widow and heir Elisabeth Lenz then had the inn converted into a residential building.
The building changed hands twice more after 1971 before it became a „boarding house“ for students in 1980.
Tiefburg-Residenz (Foto: Schlechter)
Heidrun Schlechter, who was born in Handschuhsheim, bought the „Ice Cellar Residence“ in 2014 and set about restoring the long-forgotten ice cellar in accordance with the preservation order. The restored vaulted cellar and rooms have now become a historic location ideally suited for cultural events. Decorated with old tools and photographs from the Belle Epoque era, the “Ice Cellar” serves as a venue for conferences, seminars and special events.
Ice Cellar (photo: Schlechter)
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