Meddersheim

Meddersheim is a wine-growing community on the middle stretch of the River Nahe, around two kilometres south-west of Bad Sobernheim. The municipal area covers 1,314 hectares; of this, about 100 hectares are given over to vineyard plots. Wooded hill ranges surround the settlement. Meddersheim belongs to the Nahe growing region Nahe and to the legally defined geographical area of the protected designation of origin Nahe.

The vineyard plots belong to the large site Paradiesgarten. Documented individual sites include Altenberg, Edelberg and Rheingrafenberg. Rheingrafenberg lies around one kilometre west of Meddersheim and includes the side valleys Ebersbach, Wingertschied and Eisendell. The highest vineyards of Altenberg are at elevations of more than 300 metres above sea level.

The Nahe is described as mild and comparatively dry, and rich in sunshine. The heights of the Hunsrück provide protection from cold winds. On Rheingrafenberg, warm days meet cold air that flows in from the Hunsrück high valleys at night. The vineyard consists of coarse Buntsandstein (red sandstone) laid over the top; its weathered, nutrient-poor and stony soils contain predominantly quartzite rubble and sand.

Around 60 percent of the Meddersheim vineyard area is planted with Riesling. Pinot varieties are also documented, as well as Müller-Thurgau, Kerner, Gewürztraminer, Gelber Muskateller, Bacchus, Scheurebe and Sauvignon Blanc. From the Meddersheim vineyard sites come dry Rieslings as well as Kabinett, Spätlese, Auslese and Eiswein. Rheingrafenberg has been planted with vines since about 1500; at its foot, remains of a Roman villa rustica were found. Documented working methods include hand harvesting, selective picking, work on the vines’ foliage, and fertilising with straw, farmyard manure and green cuttings. In the cellar, the grapes are processed gently, fermented mostly under controlled conditions in stainless-steel tanks, and filled into light glass bottles.