Location and climate
Bingen am Rhein lies at the mouth of the Nahe into the Rhine and is a point of contact for the wine-growing regions of Nahe, Rheinhessen, Rheingau and Mittelrhein. The city belongs to Nahe.
The Lower Nahe around Bingen has a mild, comparatively dry climate. The region is among the warmest and driest areas in Germany.
Terroir and winegrowing
The vineyards are on gently undulating hills and sunny steep slopes. In the Nahe, different soils and types of rock can be found, including slate, volcanic porphyry, sandstone, clay, limestone, loess and loam.
More than 70 wine-growing businesses cultivate around 531 hectares of vineyard area within the city of Bingen am Rhein. The Bingen sites Abtei Rupertsberg and Hildegardisbrünnchen are assigned in the official register of wine sites to the Nahe wine-growing area and the Großlage Schlosskapelle.
Grape varieties and wine style
In the Nahe wine-growing area, around three quarters of the vineyard area is accounted for by white grape varieties. Riesling leads the variety list, followed by varieties from the Pinot family. For the Lower Nahe around Bingen, besides Pinot varieties, ambitious red grape varieties with high must weights and moderate acidity are also documented.
Historical records for Bingen name Riesling, Silvaner, Spätburgunder, Frühburgunder and Portugieser.
Historical development
Hildegard of Bingen founded her first monastery on the Rupertsberg on the Nahe between 1147 and 1151. The monastery has not survived; parts of the ruins were incorporated into later buildings.
Around 1900, 704 hectares of vineyards are documented in the area of today’s Bingen; by around 1925 it was 968 hectares. Historical terraces declined, among other reasons, because establishing them made mechanical cultivation more difficult.
