📍 Middle Rhine

The Middle Rhine (Mittelrhein) is a wine zone in Germany along the Rhine valley between the towns of Bingen and Bonn. On the right bank the vineyards begin where the Rheingau ends and stretch almost to the Siebengebirge hills, about 8 kilometres south of Bonn. Part of the valley, the Rhine Gorge with its castles and the Loreley rock, has been on the UNESCO list since 2002. The zone is part of German wine.

The slopes here are very steep, made of slate, and work on them has to be done mostly by hand. That is why the area has shrunk: in 1900 there were about 2,200 hectares, today about 450. By this measure the Middle Rhine is one of the smallest zones in Germany.

About 85% of the wines are white, and more than two thirds of the area is Riesling. Riesling gives wines with fresh acidity, a mineral taste and a delicate fruit aroma. Pinot Noir, Müller-Thurgau and other grapes also grow. Simple wines are sold as "Rheinburgen-Landwein", meaning "country wine of the Rhine castles". Sparkling wine is also made.

The zone's two subareas are called Loreley and Siebengebirge. Upstream lies the famous Rheingau.