MOSEL WINE REGION - GERMANY
The River Mosel at Trittenheim
Source: Winekeller
Suggestions for wine tours, vineyard tours & wine tasting in the Mosel wine region:
The Mosel wine region: an introduction
Germany's wine industry is perhaps most famous for its Mosel Riesling wines and today the Mosel wine region is Germany’s third largest wine-producing region.
With 2,000 years of wine culture history, the Mosel (or Moselle in French), is considered the oldest wine region in Germany and certainly one of the best known and most impressive, due to its geology and geography. The River Mosel starts in France and runs for 150miles through Germany, twisting sharply to form a stunning valley, forming the spine of the Mosel wine region, with two smaller tributaries, the River Saar and the River Ruwer also flowing through it. There are some 120 beautiful wine towns to explore across the Mosel wine region. with the region also boasting some of the finest and most picturesque vineyards in Europe.
The Mosel wine region is famous for its its steep vineyards, the steepest in the world, clinging precariously to the deep river valley sides. I will never forget the first time I witnessed this spectacular sight - it makes visiting the Mosel a very unique wine travel experience!
Many of the several thousand Mosel winemakers work in incredibly challenging conditions, farming these vineyards - ‘steep’ is defined as having a gradient of more than 30% and this counts for over 40% of the Mosel’s vineyards, with some reaching inclines of 60-70%!! This makes it difficult to use any sort of machinery in the vineyards and a high dependence on manual labour.
Mosel Germany wine map
The Mosel wine region is split into 6 sub-regions, including:
The ‘Lower Mosel’ (or Terrassenmosel), stretches from Koblenz, where the River Mosel meets the River Rhine and River Lahn, to the town of Zell - the name reflects how the vines are grown here, on terraces, due to the incredibly steep slopes. In fact the the steepest vineyard in Europe is located here, Bremmer Calmont;
The ‘Middle Mosel’ (Mittelmosel), with its well-known vineyards and the heart of the wine-growing region, around the popular and well-known wine town of Bernkastel-Kues;
The ‘Upper Mosel’ (Obermosel) which begins south of the beautiful city of Trier
The ‘Mosel Gate’ (Moseltor), ‘Saar’ and ‘Ruwer’
Source: JancisRobinson.com
Riesling grapes growing on the steepest slopes in Europe at Weingut Franzen, Bremm - photo by David Weimann
Mosel Germany wine - Mosel Riesling wine
There may be 6 sub-regions in the Mosel wine region, but there is only one grape and one wine - Mosel Riesling wine - constituting over 60% of total vines planted. The Mosel wine region is considered the land of the Riesling experts!
The terroir in the Mosel wine region is ideal for the Riesling grape to flourish, with the protected valley enabling a warm climate and the steep slate slopes storing the heat of the sun during the day. The vines have to work hard to thrive and develop deep roots, to reach vital water and minerals, producing wines that are elegant, fresh, fruity and mineralic, with relatively low alcohol.
Although many of the Mosel wines are now produced in a dry style, this region is also world-renowned for its off-dry (feinherb) and award-winning noble-sweet wines, popular with wine collectors and which fetch incredibly high prices in wine auctions.
Recommended Mosel wineries
Here are some Mosel wineries we can personally recommend, having visited the vineyards and tasted the wines:
Middle Mosel - Mittelmosel:
Travel guide and other useful information
Places to visit and things to do and see in the Mosel Valley:
Germany’s Mosel wine region provides the perfect location for a wine tour, which you can combine easily with a city break, a cycling or hiking tour, or a family holiday. Wine, culture, sightseeing, wellness, relaxation and fitness activities are all on hand, set in some of Europe’s most spectacular landscapes, with the beautiful River Mosel never very far away.
Hike through the vineyards along the Mosel, Saar and Ruwer rivers, perhaps on the famous ‘Moselhöhenweg’, drive along the ‘Mosel Weinstrasse’, the ‘Römische Weinstrasse’ or the ‘Elbling Route’, just parallel to the Luxembourg border and take a Mosel river cruise!
Half the Roman Empire was once ruled from the Mosel region and the number of Unesco World Heritage sites here today reflect this. Visit ancient wine presses, modern vinothèques and wine cellars, discover medieval castles, ancient monasteries and churches, relax in ‘chocolate-box’, romantic wine villages, enjoy the hospitality of this great wine region and experience fascinating culture and top music events.
See Traben-Trarbach’s famous bridge
Bernkastel-Kues - Middle Mosel
Cochem on the River Mosel
Traditions and festivals in the Mosel Valley:
One of Germany’s most famous wine festivals is celebrated in September each year (September 1st-5th 2022) in Bernkastel-Kues in the centre of the Middle Mosel wine region, with wines, food, live music, fireworks and a wine festival, this is really something to experience!
Visit here for more information. From July to October you will always find wine, food and culture being celebrated in this part of the world - there are many different village, town and regional festivals to enjoy!
The Mosel Music festival is the largest and oldest music festival in the region of Rhineland-Palatinate - so a must for all music lovers!
Planning your Mosel wine tour:
Hopefully our suggestions have given you some insights for planning a Mosel wine tour - for further insights and inspiration see:
Also, German regional wine tour specialist BottleStops offers on-demand, private tours to Mosel
Cycling along the Mosel
Burg Eltz, 12th century castle
The famous Bremmer-Calmont vineyard
Germany’s Middle Mosel wine region is home to some of the best vineyards in the world and some of the top wine producers. Dr Loosen is an icon of German Riesling and Mosel Riesling wine and a visit to the Mosel isn’t complete without a visit to Weingut Dr. Loosen…