Location and wine-growing region
Bockenheim an der Weinstraße is a local municipality in the Bad Dürkheim district in Rhineland-Palatinate. The municipality lies on the northern boundary of the district, where the wine-growing region of the Palatinate (Pfalz) merges towards Rheinhessen. Bockenheim also marks the northern starting point of the German Wine Route and belongs to the protected wine-growing region Pfalz.
Winegrowing
With Bockenheim, around 400 hectares of vineyard area are associated. Winegrowing there has been documented as an important local activity for about 1,200 years. For the wines of the Deutsche Weinstraße Marathon 2026, Riesling and Dornfelder were used by winegrowers from Bockenheim. A documented dry Riesling from the 2025 vintage has 12.0 percent alcohol, 7.5 grams of acidity and 6.0 grams of residual sugar per litre.
Historical development
Bockenheim was first mentioned in documents in the year 770. In a deed of gift, a local resident transferred fields, houses and vineyards to the Lorsch Abbey. The present-day municipality was formed in 1956 through the merger of Kleinbockenheim and Großbockenheim.
Historic town centre and terroir
Between the two historical settlement areas stands a former abbey steward’s office (Klosterschaffnerei) of the Wadgassen Abbey, which held tithe rights there. The Heiligen Kirche site is designated as a Bockenheim vineyard site with a calcareous subsoil.
