The Ahr is one of 13 official wine regions (Weinbauregionen) in Germany. It is situated in the north of the country, and is primarily known for its red wines, made from mainly the Spätburgunder, Portugal and Frühburgunder grape varieties. Its best-known town is Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler. The Ahr River flows through the region.
Geography and climate
Ahr is a little known region, mostly for its surrounding area of the Rhine River. Its wine regions are focused on the red variety, and it’s known for growing not only red grapes, but also white wines. Ahr was once home to the Ahrenburg Castle and Bishopric, before being destroyed by French troops during the Seven Years’ War in 1756.
Ahr is located in the heart of Germany with roughly 20,000 people living there . It borders on several wine regions like Rheingau and Mosel-Saar-Ruwer , along with some smaller regions like Saarland , North Rhine-Westphalia , and parts of Baden-Württemberg .
History
The earliest documented vineyards of the Ahr date back to the year 893, when a monastery was founded in what is now the village of Ahrweiler. In later centuries many of the vineyards were owned by monasteries and noble families, such as those in Altenahr and Dernau. However, in the 17th century all vineyards were owned by the nobility.
By the mid-19th century wine making had become so widespread that it was becoming difficult to get enough workers during harvesting time. The result was a mechanization process driven by steam engines, railroads and barges along the river Ahr. The Industrial Revolution also provided new opportunities for wine making: electricity allowed for better lighting and heating as well as refrigeration; while new cement tanks replaced oak barrels as containers for wine.
A river valley
Like many of the world’s best wine regions, the Ahr is a river valley, with steep hills rising on either side and a narrow plain along the watercourse. The Ahr rises in Blankenheim and flows through Düren, where it is joined by its largest tributary, the Lenne. It then continues though Sinzig before turning north near Remagen to flow past Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler. The last section to Remagen has a milder slope than the middle reaches of the valley and more fertile soils.
The Romans were probably the first to plant vines in the Ahr valley; by the Middle Ages there were numerous small estates along the river. Most of these were owned by local monasteries or noble families and run by tenant farmers (Hagelschläger). There were also some vineyards that belonged to wealthy townsmen who lived in Cologne. In 1278, Count Dietrich IV von Are (from which comes “Ahr”) married Jutta von Geldern and received several vineyards as part of her dowry near Remagen.