German Wines

German Wine Regions 

Mosel

Germany has 13 wine regions, although you have probably only heard about one, Mosel, which is home to some of the worlds steepest vineyards and runs alongside each bank of the Moselle River, which is known for slate-laden soil and the fact that it basks in the sun for months on end. As a result, this means the grapes contain higher levels of sugar. The sweetness of these grapes is balanced with acidity and minerals, which results in the beautifully crisp taste of Mosel Resiling. 

Ahr Valley

The Ahr valley is one of Germanys northernmost and smallest wine regions, its an area surrounded on all sides by steep vineyard covered mountains, some reaching as high as 2,000 meters, the climate here is mostly mild and favorable. Four out of five bottles of Ahr wine are red and are dominated by Spatburgunder, Fruhburgunder and Portugieser. Similarly to Mosel, the most common white wine produced in the Ahr Valley is Riesling.

Pfalz 

Pfalz is one of the warmest wine growing regions, it benefits from almost perfect weather conditions for viticulture. The summers here are dry but not too warm and the winters tend to be mild. It is also the second largest German wine region, the largest being Rheinhessen, which Pfalz borders to the north. 

Wurttemberg

The steep slopes in the narrow bends of the middle Neckar Valley, as well as along the Enz, Jagst and Kocher rivers, consist primarily of fossil-rich shell limestone, marls gypsum and sandstone.  The small terraced vineyards, supported by heat-retainging, natural stone walls, bear witness to Wurttemberg's centuries old viticultural tradition.

Baden

Baden is a little wine universe of its own, embedded in a rich cultural landscape.  On one side, there is the Bodensee (Lake Constance), with its view of the Alps; on the other side, the wonderful landscape of the Tauber River Valley.  Here, the gently rounded hills of Heidelberg; there, the massif of the Kaiserstuhl that majestically overlooks the Rhine Valley.  Viticultural diversity here is not merely a whim of the times, but rather something that has evolved naturally, as have its climatic and geological differences.

Franken

The vineyards of Franconia line the River Main and its tributaries and hug the western slopes of the Steiger Forest.  Its unique geology escarpments and soils give Franken an impressive landscape and a multitude of outstanding vineyard sites.  Steeped in history, Franken wines have always been of note globally and are a frequent favourite fo the British Royal Household.

Nahe

One of Germany's most beautiful river valleys and certainly, geologically speaking, the most varied and interesting. The small tranquil River Nahe joins the Rhein at Bingen and like the Mosel has an old tax classification system. The vineyards were first classified in 1901 with the somewhat pragmatic title 'Nahe Viticultural Map for the Administrative District of Coblenz'. The top sites were taxed at up to 600 silver pieces, the more lowly sites a mere 15-20 pieces. The VDP refer to this map today and members have agreed that only the vineyard designations for Riesling from these sites.

Rheinhessen

The Rheinhessen is one of Germany's largest regions covering the triangle of land between Mainz and Bingen in the north and Worms to the South. It is protected from Westerly winds by the Donnersberg hill whilst the Rhine on its Northern and Eastern edge provides a mild climate. 1,500 hours of sunshine a year and 500mm of rain make this, perhaps surprisingly, one of Germany's driest regions.