Location and landscape
Müllheim is located in the Markgräflerland between the Upper Rhine Plain and the foothills of the southern Black Forest. Gently sloping vineyard hillsides lead down to the Rhine plain, while the Black Forest rises in the east.
Climate and viticulture
The area belongs to the natural region of the Upper Rhine Plain. For the main growing season, around 1,300 to 1,400 hours of sunshine are documented in the Markgräflerland. The annual precipitation amount is 800 to 900 millimetres. The municipal climate profile indicates an increasing exposure to heat, with more hot days and tropical nights, as well as a seasonal shift of precipitation towards wetter winters and drier summers.
In the Müllheim municipal district, there are around 524 hectares of vineyard area. Viticulture and cellar work have shaped the town for centuries; the annual wine market has been held since 1872.
Grape varieties and wine profile
Gutedel is the historically characteristic grape variety of Müllheim and of the Markgräflerland. Its cultivation in the region has been documented for more than 200 years; vine material was introduced to the Markgräflerland in 1780 by Margrave Karl Friedrich of Baden. The local wine profile also includes Weißburgunder, Grauburgunder, Müller-Thurgau and Spätburgunder.
Soils of the vineyard sites
The vineyard site Reggenhag is characterised by calcareous Lower Jurassic bedrock, while the adjacent Pfaffenstück is described as steeper and rockier. In the Sonnhalde, loess soils occur in the south and heavier clayey soils in the west. The Römerberg lies on tertiary calcareous conglomerate with shell and fossil sand inclusions and is described as a steep, humus-rich slope.
