RHEINGAU - Regional Bio Flashcards
RHEINGAU - Bio
One of the smallest and most important of Germany’s regions and is located on the Rhine river (-gau denotes that it was once a county of the Frankish Empire).
Rheingau wines have a pronounced acidity and aromas of citrus fruit with smoke-tinged minerality.
The Rhine river turns suddenly westward for 15 miles (25km) between Wiesbaden and Rudesheim. It is here on the south-facing slopes that 90% of the Rheingau vineyards are located. The remaining 10% are either on the flat lands around Hochheim or on the steeps slopes between Assmannshausen and Lorch.
The vineyards here particularly benefit from the river’s reflected sunlight as well as facing directly south, adding a few extra frost-free weeks at either end of the growing season. The Rheingau is bisected by the latitude of 50 degrees north and grows mostly Riesling with some Pinot Noir in distant second.
The climate is cool and continental with soil types and topography that vary considerabley from one end of the region to the other, from calcareous soils to slate, quartzite, sandstone, gravel and loess.
