Rheingrafenberg

The Rheingrafenberg is a legally recognised single vineyard in Meddersheim in the Nahe. The vineyard site lies about one kilometre west of the village and includes the side valleys of Ebersbach, Wingertschied and Eisendell. It belongs to the Meddersheim winegrowing area, which is assigned to the large growing area Paradiesgarten.

The documented slopes reach a gradient of approximately 50 per cent and have south-easterly aspects, especially in the area of Eisendell. Warm days are offset by a pronounced daily temperature swing; at night, cold air flows from the Hunsrück heights into the side valleys. The subsoil consists of formations of the Upper Rotliegendes with weathered coarse sandstone, quartzite rubble and quartzitic sand. The shallow, weathered soils are low in nutrients, rich in stones and rocky.

A larger vineyard holding is located in the side valleys of Wingertschied and Eisendell. For parcels on the Rheingrafenberg, short pruning to one cane, yield reduction, repeated selection of ripening grapes, leaf work in the grape zone and fully manual harvesting are documented. Riesling is a main grape variety of the site; in addition, Spätburgunder and Grauburgunder were documented in wines labelled Meddersheimer Rheingrafenberg.

Rheingrafenberg Rieslings are described as filigree, mineral-driven and fruit-focused, with pronounced acidity. Documented aromas include lime, apple and quince. One Riesling was fermented slowly after a short maceration time of twelve weeks and was then matured on the lees. For a documented Riesling, selective hand-harvesting in mid-October took place at a yield of 65 hectolitres per hectare.

A publication by the winery dates viticulture on the steep slopes to at least the time of the Rheingrafen around 1500. It also mentions a boundary stone with the family coat of arms, as well as the remains of a Roman villa rustica at the foot of the Rheingrafenberg.