Rheingau is one of 13 designated

German wine regions German wine regions are classified according to the quality category of the wine grown therein: '' Tafelwein, Landwein, Qualitätswein bestimmter Anbaugebiete'' (QbA) and '' Prädikatswein''. The wine regions allowed to produce QbA and Prädikat ...

(''Weinbaugebiete'') producing quality wines (''QbA'' and ''Prädikatswein''). It was named after the traditional region of

Rheingau The Rheingau (; ) is a region on the northern side of the Rhine between the German towns of Wiesbaden and Lorch near Frankfurt, reaching from the Western Taunus to the Rhine. It is situated in the German state of Hesse and is part of the Rhein ...

(meaning "Rhine district"), the wine region is situated in the state of

Hesse Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major historic cities are ...

, where it constitutes part of the

Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis Rheingau-Taunus is a Kreis (district) in the west of Hesse, Germany. Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis is part of the Darmstadt region; its main administrative seat is Bad Schwalbach. Outposted sections of the local administration are located in Idstein and R ...

administrative district. Although, making up only 3 percent of the total German vineyard area, Rheingau has been the source of many historically important innovations in German wine making, and contains many wine producers of international reputation, such as

Schloss Johannisberg Schloss Johannisberg is a castle and winery in the village of Johannisberg to the west of Wiesbaden, Hesse, in the Rheingau wine-growing region of Germany. It has been making wine for over 900 years. The winery is most noted for its claim to ...

. Rheingau, with of vineyards in 2016, also boasts a higher proportion of

Riesling Riesling (, ; ) is a white grape variety that originated in the Rhine region. Riesling is an aromatic grape variety displaying flowery, almost perfumed, aromas as well as high acidity. It is used to make dry, semi-sweet, sweet, and sparkling wh ...

(77.7%) than any other German wine-growing region, with

Spätburgunder Pinot Noir () is a red-wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from pinot noir grapes. The name is derived from the French words for ''pine'' and ''black.'' The word ''pine ...

(Pinot noir) making up most of the rest (12.2%), followed by

Müller-Thurgau Müller-Thurgau is a white grape variety (sp. '' Vitis vinifera'') which was created by Hermann Müller from the Swiss Canton of Thurgau in 1882 at the Geisenheim Grape Breeding Institute in Germany. It is a crossing of Riesling with Madelein ...

., Format: PDF, KBytes: 219, accessed on October 26, 2021

Geography and terroir

The geography of the Rheingau is very distinct. Around

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

, the river

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , source ...

detours from its northward flow west for about 30 km before it flows north again. The greater part of the Rheingau is situated here on the river's right bank, but the region also includes the stretch along Rhine after it turns northward again, around the villages Assmannshausen and Lorch. The vineyards in Hochheim on the Main river are also included, just before it flows into Rhine. The Rheingau spans about 50 km from end to end. North of the Rheingau rises the

Taunus The Taunus is a mountain range in Hesse, Germany, located north of Frankfurt. The tallest peak in the range is '' Großer Feldberg'' at 878 m; other notable peaks are '' Kleiner Feldberg'' (825 m) and '' Altkönig'' (798 m). The Taunus range spa ...

mountain range, so most of the Rheingau's vineyards are on south-facing slope between hills and streams, which provides excellent wine-growing conditions in these northerly latitudes.

History

Since the Verona donation in 983, the Rheingau belonged to the

archbishopric of Mainz The Electorate of Mainz (german: Kurfürstentum Mainz or ', la, Electoratus Moguntinus), previously known in English as Mentz and by its French name Mayence, was one of the most prestigious and influential states of the Holy Roman Empire. In t ...

. Legend has it that

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first E ...

let the first vineyards be planted in the region, close to present-day Schloss Johannisberg. However finds like a Roman origin grapevine cutting knife point to even earlier cultivation. Better documented is the early influence of the church on Rheingau winemaking, which was controlled from

Eberbach Abbey Eberbach Abbey (German: Kloster Eberbach) is a former Cistercian monastery in Eltville in the Rheingau, Germany. On account of its Romanesque and early Gothic buildings it is considered one of the most significant architectural heritage sites i ...

Augustinians Augustinians are members of Christian religious orders that follow the Rule of Saint Augustine, written in about 400 AD by Augustine of Hippo. There are two distinct types of Augustinians in Catholic religious orders dating back to the 12th–1 ...

and

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

s are known to have inhabited the area of the later abbey from 1116, and in 1135 the

Cistercians The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint ...

arrived, sent out from Clairvaux. Legend has it that the Cistercians, which are also credited with having founded the wine industry in

Burgundy Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The ...

, brought

Pinot noir Pinot Noir () is a red-wine grape variety of the species ''Vitis vinifera''. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from pinot noir grapes. The name is derived from the French words for ''pine'' and ''black.'' The word ''pine ...

with them to Rheingau, although the earliest record of the grape variety in Rheingau is from 1470. The slopes down from the Taunus mountains belonging to Eberbach Abbey were planted as vineyards in the 12th century, and early in the 13th century the vineyards had reached their present area. In medieval times, more red than white wine was produced, usually as

Gemischter Satz Viticulture (from the Latin word for '' vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of '' Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine ...

, i.e. the vineyards were planted with mixed varieties which were vinified together. Rheingau1867

In 2011 it was unveiled, that the Official Wine Classification in the Rheingau has a 150 years history. The classification was the basis for taxation of wineries after the annexation of the

Duchy of Nassau The Duchy of Nassau (German: ''Herzogtum Nassau'') was an independent state between 1806 and 1866, located in what is now the German states of Rhineland-Palatinate and Hesse. It was a member of the Confederation of the Rhine and later of the G ...

by the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. ...

in 1866. In the book ''Der nassauische Weinbau'' published in 1867 by Friedrich Wilhelm Dünkelberg a historical map ''Weinbau-Karte des nassauischen Rheingaus'' (Viticultural map of the Rheingau in the Duchy of Nassau), all known vineyards at that time had been marked up by colour, evaluated and classified in first class vineyards (I. Klasse), second class vineyards (II. Klasse) and the remaining vineyards . As first class vineyards (I. Klasse) only 13 Lagen in 9

boundaries Boundary or Boundaries may refer to: * Border, in political geography Entertainment * ''Boundaries'' (2016 film), a 2016 Canadian film * ''Boundaries'' (2018 film), a 2018 American-Canadian road trip film *Boundary (cricket), the edge of the pla ...

had been classified:

Villages and producers

Some villages of Rheingau, listed in the downstream direction of Rhine, with some notable vineyards and producers. *

Hochheim am Main Hochheim am Main (; Old English: Hockamore) is a town in the Main-Taunus district of the German state of Hesse. It is located near the right bank of the river Main three miles above its confluence with the Rhine, as well as on the German Timber- ...

**vineyards Domdechaney, Kirchenstück and **Weingut Künstler **Weingut W. J. Schäfer * Walluf **J.B. Becker, a family owned wine-producer since 1893 *

Eltville Eltville am Rhein (from ''Alta Villa'', Latin for "high estate, high town", corrupted to ''Eldeville'', ''Elfeld'' and later Eltville, ) is a town in the Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Darmstadt in Hesse, Germany. It lies on ...

**Hessische Staatsweingüter Kloster Eberbach ("Hessian State Wineries Eberbach Abbey"), moved to a new cellar next to the vineyard

Steinberg, Kloster Eberbach Steinberg is a wall-enclosed vineyard (a ''Clos'', using French terminology) near Hattenheim in the Rheingau.Rauenthal **vineyards Baiken and Nonnenberg * Kiedrich **vineyard **Weingut Robert Weil *

Hattenheim Hattenheim is a ''Stadtteil'' in Eltville am Rhein, Hesse, Germany. It lies within the Rheingau wine region. Points of interest * Burg Hattenheim * Eberbach Abbey (Kloster Eberbach) * Schloss Reichartshausen * Steinberg, Kloster Eberbach ...

**vineyards Mannberg and Wisselbrunnen **vineyard

Steinberg Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH (trading as Steinberg) is a German musical software and hardware company based in Hamburg. It develops music writing, recording, arranging, and editing software, most notably Cubase, Nuendo, and Dorico. It als ...

, next to Eberbach Abbey, does not use a village name in its vineyard designation **''Hessische Staatsweingüter Kloster Eberbach'' has its main cellars in a newly constructed facility close to the Steinberg vineyard, after having previously been located in Eltville **vineyard , is shared with the neighbouring village of Erbach * Oestrich **vineyards Doosberg and Lenchen **Weingut Josef Spreitzer **Weingut Peter Jakob Kühn * Winkel **vineyards Hasensprung and Jesuitengarten **

Schloss Vollrads Schloss Vollrads is a castle and a wine estate in the Rheingau wine-growing region in Germany. It has been making wine for over 800 years. History After the donation of Verona in 983 the archbishopric of Mainz, the new owner, invested in ...

, both a producer and a vineyard name, does not use a village name in its vineyard designation * Johannisberg **

, both a producer and a vineyard name, does not use a village name in its vineyard designation * Rüdesheim **vineyards , primarily Berg Roseneck, Berg Rottland and Berg Schlossberg **Weingut Georg Breuer ** Weingut Carl Jung **Weingut Josef Leitz ** Weingut Dr. Heinrich Nägler * Assmannshausen **vineyard Höllenberg, famous for its red wines **Weingut August Kesseler

Grape varieties

The most cultivated grape varieties, by area in 2019, were:

References

External links

Rheingau Wine Production Detail
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rheingau (wine region) Wine regions of Germany Geography of Hesse Rheingau