Wine-growing town on the Main
Klingenberg am Main lies on the Main at the western edge of the Spessart and belongs to the wine-growing region Franconia. Winegrowing has been documented since 1261, when vineyards on the Hochberg were mentioned in a deed concerning the counts of Clingenburg.
Climate and vineyard sites
The Atlantic-influenced climate brings mild winters, moderately warm summers, around 700 millimetres of annual rainfall, and an average annual temperature of about 10 °C. Spring begins earlier than in other Franconian wine-growing regions; bud burst in the terrace sites starts on average about one week earlier, and this lead is maintained through flowering and ripening.
The vineyard site Schloßberg stretches along the right bank of the Main between Röllfeld and Erlenbach. It is predominantly oriented to the south-west and has an average slope of around 60 per cent; individual sections reach up to 100 per cent. Elevation ranges from approximately 120 to 230 metres above sea level.
Soils and terraces
The vineyard soils were formed from Triassic Bunter sandstone deposits. At Schloßberg, red, rocky and stony Bunter sandstone, weathering material and red clay determine the character of the site; loess in the upper slope area contributes to additional water supply. Large parts of the site are terraced across the slope and are supported by dry-stone walls made of Bunter sandstone. These store heat and release it to the vines at night.
Around four hectares at the southern end have been converted into machine-accessible vineyards with a gradient of about 18 per cent. The steepest areas can only be cultivated and harvested by hand.
Grape varieties and winegrowing
Klingenberg has around 30 hectares of vineyard land, of which about 23 hectares are planted with red grape varieties. Pinot Noir and Portugieser are the most important red varieties; among the white grapes, Müller-Thurgau predominates. Further plantings include, among others, Silvaner, Traminer, Riesling, St. Laurent, Domina and Dornfelder. In the VDP classification of Schloßberg, Pinot Noir is listed as the only grape variety.
The town is associated above all with red wine. A documented museum vineyard also preserves the historical post training system and mixed planting with at least 20 partly rare grape varieties. The further vineyard site Hochberg is also listed in the official Franconian vineyard directory for Klingenberg am Main.
