Location and landscape
Birkweiler is a wine village in the Siebeldinger Tal at the foot of the Hohenberg, which is around 556 metres high, and lies on the German Wine Route in the Pfalz. The town is located at approximately 49.205684° north latitude and 8.038003° east longitude. The regional tourism authority describes the climate as mild.
Vineyard sites and soils
The Kastanienbusch lies in a wind-sheltered, arched hollow at the Hohenberg. South-facing areas are at around 180 to 300 metres above sea level and usually have a slope of between 15 and 30 per cent. There you find iron-rich, stony-skeletal Rotliegend slate, weathered Bunter sandstone, as well as calcareous soils with deposits of limestone marls.
The Mandelberg lies south-west of Birkweiler on a wind- and rain-protected slope with an east-south-easterly aspect at about 260 to 320 metres above sea level. Its soils consist mainly of Muschelkalk with loam, clay marl and white limestone. The Birkweiler Rosenberg has a south-south-easterly aspect, lies at about 180 to 220 metres above sea level and has Keuper soils.
Viticulture
The steep vineyards of Mandelberg, Rosenberg and especially Kastanienbusch are cultivated by twelve winegrowing families. In Kastanienbusch, high daytime temperatures meet cooler nights, early bud break and a long ripening period; the grape varieties are assigned to the different soils. In the local VDP site profile, Riesling is mentioned; for Mandelberg, Weißburgunder; and for Birkweiler Rosenberg, Chardonnay as well as Weißburgunder.
Wines mentioned in Birkweiler include Riesling, red Burgundy varieties, Silvaner, St. Laurent and Spätburgunder, as well as wines designated as Große Gewächse. Kastanienbusch and Mandelberg are classified as VDP.GROSSE LAGE®, and Birkweiler Rosenberg as VDP.ERSTE LAGE®.
History
Birkweiler was first mentioned in a document in 1285 and historically belonged to the settlements of the Siebeldinger Tal. After 1400, the valley became part of the Electorate of the Palatinate and remained part of the Electorate Palatinate’s Oberamt Germersheim until the French Revolution.
