Location and Climate
Nonnenhorn is a municipality in the Bavarian district of Lindau in the north bank area of Lake Constance and lies at an elevation of about 407 metres. The place is described as a low-lying tongue of land on Lake Constance. The lake acts as a large heat store that evens out differences in temperature. The Bavarian Lake Constance wine-growing region belongs to the cool-climate regions near the Alps.
Soils and Vineyards
The soils of Bavarian Lake Constance were shaped by earlier Alpine glaciations and include stony, weakly clayey loams as well as sandy-clayey gravel soils. The Seehalde site was previously a lakeside zone of Lake Constance and has a high proportion of gravel and stones with embedded calcareous sands. The Sonnenbichl site, which is further away from the lake, is warmer, contains less coarse material and has a little more clay.
Grape Varieties and Wine Style
In and around Nonnenhorn, among other varieties, Müller-Thurgau, Spätburgunder, Dornfelder, Regent, Bacchus, Grauburgunder, Riesling, Weißburgunder and Sauvignon Blanc are grown. Müller-Thurgau is associated with light, elegant white wines with a mild acidity and a fine note of muscat; Spätburgunder is used to produce elegant, full-bodied red wines. For Bavarian Lake Constance, clarity and a pronounced structure of acidity are mentioned.
Winegrowing and History
Legally, the Bavarian Lake Constance wine-growing region is assigned to the protected designation of origin Württemberg. For quality wine, the maximum yield there is 110 hectolitres per hectare of vine-growing area capable of yielding. In Nonnenhorn, a large wine press, a so-called Weintorkel, was built in 1591. Since the early 1970s, wire trellises have replaced the traditional single vines; sown driving aisles made it easier to use tractors as well as for cultivation and plant protection. Documented work includes pruning the vines during the winter rest period, repeated leaf removal in summer and hand harvesting in autumn.
