Location and classification
Marbach is a registered single-vineyard in Bad Sobernheim in the Nahe winegrowing region and in the Nahetal area. The Rhineland-Palatinate vineyards directory lists the site in 2024 with 16.4 hectares. It lies above Bad Sobernheim and Meddersheim.
Climate and soils
Bad Sobernheim is shaped by a comparatively cool climate with a long growing season. The site includes steep, south-facing parcels. The soils consist of red clay, strongly interspersed with slate, quartzite and Nahe gravel. In geological terms, Marbach is assigned to the formations of the upper Rotliegend and has a higher proportion of red clay than the nearby site Domberg.
Grape varieties and wine styles
Riesling and Spätburgunder are documented for Marbach. The Rieslings range from dry wine through Kabinett, Spätlese and Auslese to Trockenbeerenauslese and Eiswein. The Spätburgunder is made as a dry red wine from the south-facing parcels.
Cultivation and history
For a Spätburgunder parcel, a twelve-year-old vineyard with the Wiegert clone, a three-year-old vineyard with French clones and a yield of about 30 hectolitres per hectare in 2007 are documented. The must macerated for 22 days traditionally in wooden stands; afterwards the wine matured for 20 months in French barriques, of which 50 percent were new. Marbach was the first vineyard cultivated by Karl-Heinz Schneider in Sobernheim. In 2022, a commemorative Riesling was released in honour of his winemaking career.
