Location and classification
Schelmen is a legally recognised single vineyard in the Wonnegau area of the Großlage Sybillenstein in the wine-growing region Rheinhessen. It lies within the cadastral district of Wahlheim. In the 2024 harvest area register, 57.7 hectares of planted vineyard area are recorded for this site.
Climate and soils
The vineyards stretch to the north of Kettenheim. Wahlheim lies in the Kühlen Grund, a basin that is cooler than the surrounding area. At the same time, Rheinhessen is documented as warm and dry; the region has around 530 millimetres of annual rainfall, about 1,970 hours of sunshine and a growing season of approximately 280 days.
In Schelmen, loess-pararendzina and limestone-rendzina occur. The deep, light loam soils of the loess store a lot of water available to plants and are calcareous as well as well-rooted. The shallow to medium-deep limestone soils are very rich in lime, stony and sandy-loamy, drain well and warm up easily, but store little water available to plants. The limestone originates from tertiary marine deposits with calcareous algal reefs.
Grape varieties and wine style
For the Schelmen plots in Wahlheim, Grauburgunder, Weißburgunder, Chardonnay, Sauvignon blanc, Scheurebe and Würzer are documented. Spätburgunder is also recorded for Wahlheimer Schelmen; Spätburgunder and Riesling are mentioned as late-ripening varieties that benefit from the heat-storing, stony soils.
On loess-pararendzina, yellow-fruited wines with notes of apple, peach, pear and citrus, moderate acidity and medium body are combined in an early-accessible style. Limestone-rendzina is associated with aromas of citrus fruits, apple, gooseberry, mango and passion fruit, along with well-balanced acidity, mineral and chalky impressions and development potential.
Cultivation and name
A wine-growing business from Wahlheim documents permanent ground cover between the rows of vines and fertilisation adapted to vine growth for its Schelmen plots. The white and red wines produced there are stored until bottling in old wooden casks, stainless steel tanks or barriques. The name Schelmen goes back to the Middle High German word “schelme” for carcass and refers to an old drovers’ or knackers’ field.
