Heisterberg

Heisterberg is a vineyard site in Niederdollendorf, a district of Königswinter, in the Siebengebirge within the wine-growing region Mittelrhein. The site belongs to the Großlage Petersberg and is located on the eastern bank of the Rhine, about two kilometres from the river. The exposed slope lies at roughly 110 to 130 metres above sea level and is described as south-facing and, respectively, south-east-facing.

The soil consists predominantly of clay-rich loam. The historically cultivated vineyard area comprises about 0.6 hectares, while the legally defined vineyard site Heisterberg is 1.7 hectares in size. Documented here are Riesling, Elbling, Early Yellow Malinger (Früher Gelber Malinger), Early Pinot Noir (Frühburgunder) and Spätburgunder. Cultivation of Heisterberg by Kay Weine is, according to their own information, carried out by a Bioland-certified estate.

Winegrowing at Heisterberg was first documented in 1329 in connection with the monastery of Kloster Heisterbach. In earlier times, the site bore the name Pfaffenröttchen. After winegrowing was discontinued in 1983 due to insufficient economic viability, it was replanted in June 2002. In the same year, a dry-stone wall and the access path were reconstructed to enable further cultivation of the slope and to reduce the risk of slope movements.

Heisterberg is an officially defined vineyard site in the Qualitätsweinbau region Mittelrhein, in the Siebengebirge area and within the Großlage Petersberg. The legal designation is assigned to the cadastral district (Gemarkungsbezirk) of Niederdollendorf, parcel (Flur) 3. The plot was made a state domain in 1803, entered private ownership in 1823, and was acquired in 1939 by the Prussian provincial administration. Since 1953, it has been in the possession of the Landschaftsverband Rheinland, which preserves the historic vineyard as a cultural landscape project. Documented wines are dry Riesling, dry Frühburgunder, dry Gelber Malinger, Elbling sparkling wine (Sekt) and Riesling Auslese.