Stuttgart lies in a bowl, and everyone who lives there knows it. The city climbs out of the Neckar valley into steep hillsides covered with vineyards, so that you can ride from a central square and be among grapevines within ten minutes. The cauldron shape, known locally as the Talkessel, traps heat and air in summer, but it also gives the city its distinct character, with staircases called Stäffele running up the slopes and villas hanging on the hillsides. It is also, for motorcyclists, a place with unusual pedigree: this is where Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach built an early motorcycle in 1885, a wooden contraption with a petrol engine often called the first of its kind.
The city's identity is bound up with engineering. Mercedes-Benz and Porsche both have their headquarters here, and each has a museum that draws rather serious pilgrims. The Mercedes museum, near the Neckar stadium, is a spiral of vehicle history from steam wagons to modern racing cars, and the Porsche museum in Zuffenhausen is a gleaming white block full of sports cars. Both are worth an hour on a wet day. The city also has the Schlossplatz, with the New Palace and the pleasant gardens, and Swabian cooking that includes Maultaschen, a kind of large filled pasta, and Spätzle.
The ride out of town is more demanding than it looks on the map. Steep roads climb out of the valley toward the Schönbuch forest and the Swabian Alb, and the suburbs spread a long way in places, with a lot of traffic lights and a slow-moving flow in the rush hour. Speed limits are tight, and cameras are common. Once you clear the edge of the city the roads open into rolling farmland and wooded valleys, with mild bends and a good surface. Spring and autumn are lovely, when the vineyards are fresh green or golden red and the air is clear.
Fuel is no problem in a city of nearly six hundred thousand people, with stations on all the main roads, and cafes and bakeries are at every corner. Mornings tend to be best, with traffic lower and the air cooler. Be prepared for local environmental zones that restrict older vehicles in the city centre, though modern motorcycles are normally fine. A good start here is a coffee in the old town, a look at the hills, and then the first climb.