Mosel Wine Region
The Mosel wine region lies along the valley of the Mosel River and its tributaries, which are called Saar and Ruwer. The vineyards stretch from Trier on the river’s upper reaches all the way to Koblenz in Middle Rhine.
Famous producers include: Willi Haag, Dr Loosen and Zilliken. Their wines are expensive but worth it! I particularly enjoy their Riesling style wines.
Wine Appellations of Mosel
Beyond the part of Germany that surrounds the Rhine River, there is a large area known as Mosel. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, it has swaths of vineyards nestled along its riverbanks and hillsides. Those hills are home to some of Germany’s best wine regions.
That’s because the Mosel region is at a higher elevation than most others in Germany. The result is some awesome wines with a lively acidity and mouthfeel (think tannic/bright flavors).
Wine expert Evan Goldstein covers all that and more in his book The Wine Atlas: A Comprehensive Guide to Wine Regions Around the World (Scribe, 2010). He recommends trying three wines from each appellation: one white, one red, and one rosé.
History of the Mosel wine region
Now that you know a little bit about the wines of Germany, let’s take a deeper look at one of its wine regions: Mosel.
The Mosel region is the oldest wine-growing region in Germany and takes its name from the river Moselle, which meanders through France and Luxembourg before reaching Germany. The banks of the river create a large and diverse wine-growing area with many sub-regions. In Roman times, the Germans were described as being very fond of wine, so it is likely that viticulture was introduced to them by the Romans.
Mosel Vineyards and Wineries
If you’re a wine lover with a taste for travel, then you must check out the German wine regions. Germany is the third largest producer of wine in Europe and is home to some of the most renowned Riesling wines in existence. The Mosel is one of Germany’s 13 official wine regions, and certainly one of the most picturesque.
The Mosel region is largely made up of small family-owned vineyards. In fact, 87% of all vineyards are family-run operations. There are more than 11,000 acres (4,500 hectares) under cultivation with 63,808 gallons (241,000hl) produced each year. The Mosel is also quite unique in that its landscape has incredibly steep slopes due to its relatively mountainous terrain—in fact, some locations have vineyards at an angle greater than 60 degrees!
The Wines of Mosel
The Mosel is one of the top wine regions in Germany; it is renowned for producing wines with great finesse and elegance. There are currently around 12,000 hectares of vineyards in the region, which makes it the third largest wine growing area in Germany.
Mosel Riesling is famous for its elegance and finesse, but what many people don’t know is that this wine region produces a wide range of other varietals as well. Spätburgunder (Pinot Noir), Elbling and Müller-Thurgau are some of the most popular ones.
Grape Varieties in Mosel
The variety of grapes you’ll find in Mosel are as follows:
- Riesling
- Weissburgunder (Pinot Blanc)
- Grauburgunder (Pinot Gris)
- Silvaner
- Elbling
Mosel is a large wine region with many appellations, which produces high quality wines.
Mosel is the third largest wine region in Germany and it is famous for its Riesling wines. It is located in the west of Germany, and it is also the most northerly of the German wine regions, which means that it has a cooler climate than some other areas. This cooler climate produces high quality wines which are very acidic.