Castellberg

The Castellberg is a vineyard site at the edge of the Markgräfler Hills near Ballrechten-Dottingen in the foothill zone of the Black Forest, on the Upper Rhine Graben. The steep hill cone, exposed to the west to south-west, lies at the edge of the Sulzbach valley; below the wooded summit, the vineyard slopes extend.

The site is characterised by high daytime temperatures and cool nights. The influences described include warm air from the Burgundian Gate and cooler night winds from the Black Forest. The Castellberg consists predominantly of tertiary coastal conglomerate with calcareous rubble. For the vineyards, kalk marl, limestone-weathered material and conglomerate are also mentioned.

The historic terraces, aligned to the south and south-east, were laid out systematically from 1784 with the support of the Margrave of Baden, Karl Friedrich. A cadastral map from 1792, with additions from the year 1801, documents the development. The Castellberg is connected to a medieval hilltop castle; in the 19th century the terraces were expanded upslope, and again in the 1930s towards the north-east. Dry stone walls, terraces and stone stairways shape the steep vineyard, in which more than 500 steps are documented. Damaged sections of wall were repaired in a public restoration project using the original material to a large extent.

At the Castellberg, among other grapes, Gutedel, Red Gutedel, Müller-Thurgau, Grauburgunder, Weißburgunder, Riesling, Spätburgunder and Gewürztraminer are grown, or they are developed as Castellberg wines. Dry wines are documented as well as sweet and noble-sweet bottlings. For Castellberg wines, careful pressing, natural must clarification, controlled or chilled fermentation, longer lees ageing and vegan production are described. With premium wines from sites such as the Dottinger Castellberg, hand harvesting, selective work in the vineyard, spontaneous fermentation and ageing in Burgundy wooden casks are also used; the selection yields are about 20 to 25 hl/ha.