Schloss Johannisberg

Locatede in the Rheingau region, Johannisberg Castle is the world’s oldest winery specialising in Riesling, the birthplace of the ‘Spätlese’ variety, and a place where winemaking has been documented since  817. 

History

Johannisberg, the hill, was first mentioned in documents in 817, around the time of Charlemagne. Around 1100, monks from the Benedictine Abbey of St Alban in Mainz founded a monastery on this site, dedicating it to St John, which gave the hill its name: Johannisberg, or St John’s Hill. The castle as we know it today was built from 1716 onwards. In 1720, 294,000 Riesling vines were planted on the estate, making it the world’s first vineyard dedicated exclusively to this variety, a decision that raised the history of German winemaking.

The most famous moment occurred in 1775. The annual courier sent to authorise the harvest was late, and by the time he arrived, the grapes had overripened and were covered in what turned out to be noble rot. The winemaker pressed them anyway, producing a wine of unprecedented quality. It was from this incident that Spätlese was born, and subsequently Auslese and Eiswein.

In 1816, following Napoleon’s defeat, the estate was gifted by Emperor Francis I of Austria to the diplomat Prince Clemens von Metternich in recognition of his role at the Congress of Vienna. The Metternich family owned it for over a century. Today, Schloss Johannisberg belongs to the Dr. Oetker Group. The current director of the winery is Stefan Doktor.

In 1971, the vineyard was officially designated as a separate plot, with exclusive rights held by the estate. 

Vineyards

The estate covers 35 hectares, all on a single contiguous south-facing plot, which is a VDP.Grosse Lage, the German equivalent of Grand Cru. The vineyard rises from 114 to 182 metres above sea level, with gradients of up to 45%. The 50th parallel runs directly through the quartzite rock at the foot of the hill.

Terroir

The soils consist of Taunus quartzite shale, a mineral-rich, stony substrate that drains well and retains heat. The Taunus Mountains to the north shield the vineyard from cold winds, whilst the Rhine at the foot of the slope, wide enough at this point to resemble a lake, reflects light and moderates the temperature. These conditions ensure a long and slow growing season, ideal for Riesling. The site is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Grape varieties

100% Riesling. Every wine produced at Schloss Johannisberg is made from a single variety grown in the single vineyard surrounding the castle.

Winemaking

The estate combines biodynamic viticulture with fermentation in a mix of stainless steel tanks and large traditional oak barrels. The wines are aged in the estate’s cellars, partly in 900-year-old vaulted underground cellars dating back to the original abbey, where around 25,000 bottles are stored, dating back to the 1748 vintage, making this collection one of the oldest active wine libraries in the world. The oak for the barrels comes from the estate’s own forest.

Wines

Since 1820, Schloss Johannisberg has used a colour-coded capsule system introduced by Prince Metternich to distinguish quality levels without the use of labels. This system is still in use today.

Gelblack (yellow) is the entry-level QbA. Rotlack (red) is Kabinett. Grünlack (green) is Spätlese. Silberlack (silver) is Grosses Gewächs, the finest dry wine.

As for sweeter wines, Rosalack (pink) is Auslese, Rosa-Goldlack (pink-gold) is Beerenauslese, Goldlack (gold) is Trockenbeerenauslese, and Blaulack (blue) is Eiswein.

Rosalack and Goldlack wines are produced only in exceptional harvest years.