Location and climate
Flonheim is a municipality in the wine region Rheinhessen; Uffhofen is also part of the municipality. With an average of around 560 millimetres of rainfall and roughly 2,000 hours of sunshine per year, Rheinhessen is among the driest wine regions in Germany.
Landscape and geology
The Binger Berg formed more than 30 million years ago, when parts of Rheinhessen were covered by an ancient sea. On the north side of today’s Flonheim, an offshore reef once stretched out. The vineyard sites Binger Berg and Rotenpfad belong to the Großlage Adelberg, rising within the Rotenpfad and used as a walking area. In the south of the municipality, sandstone was already being quarried during Roman times.
Vineyard sites and wine styles
The Binger Berg has deep, calcareous clay soils from marl, or respectively Pelosol; the clay marl contains up to 40 per cent lime. Many grape varieties are grown there, producing full-bodied, dense and rich wines that combine moderate acidity and ripe fruit. The Rotenpfad is predominantly shaped by loess and also features Rigosols formed from Rotliegend. For these soils, wines are described as refreshing and gently acidic with medium structure, as well as spicy, mineral wines with lively acidity and ageing potential. In Uffhofen, the vineyard site La Roche has calcareous, stony clay loam from Rotliegend and Rigosol; Riesling and Spätburgunder are documented there.
History and winegrowing culture
Flonheim was first mentioned as Flan(n)nenheim in the Lorsch Codex in 765/767. Around 1133, an Augustinian canons’ foundation dedicated to the holy Maria was established; it was confirmed by the pope in 1162 and dissolved during the Reformation in 1554. In the Rotenpfad and La Roche vineyard sites, trulli from the 18th century have been preserved, which farmers and winegrowers used as small round protective huts. Flonheim and Uffhofen are located in the protected designation of origin area for wine from Rheinhessen.
