Location and classification
The Schwarze Kreuz is an officially designated single vineyard in Freinsheim in Pfalz. It lies on the road from Freinsheim towards Ungstein and is connected to a wine hiking trail southwest of Freinsheim. In the 2024 vineyard register, it is listed as a single vineyard number 820707 within the Großlage of Kobnert in the Mittelhaardt—Deutsche Weinstraße area. The register entry shows 73.9 hectares of planted vineyard area.
Topography and soils
Gentle hills protect the vineyards in a very warm microclimate of the Rhine plain. The soils consist of gravel-bearing loamy sands, tertiary sands and, in places, clayey layers, and they show pronounced local diversity. For a documented parcel, a well-drained loamy sand layer and a dense, heavy subsoil are described.
Grape varieties and wines
With the site are associated Riesling, Dornfelder, Portugieser, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, as well as St. Laurent and Sankt Laurent. Dry red wines from Sankt Laurent are documented, as well as red cuvées based on Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. A Riesling was developed as a dry Kabinett from selective hand-harvesting and a three-week fermentation at 18 °C.
Cultivation and naming
A documented red-wine parcel includes ground cover with buckwheat, clover and radish; fertilisation with horse manure; the removal of double shoots; targeted leaf work; and low yields. For Sankt Laurent, hand-harvested grapes, a yield of 30 hectolitres per hectare and a twelve-day maceration period are stated. The name comes from an apotropaic sandstone wayside cross with a depiction of the Crucifixion, dated approximately to 1430 or to the 15th century.
