The wine-growing region is located in the federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany. The vineyards cover 23,554 hectares, making it the second largest German wine-growing region after Rheinhessen. Until 1995 it was called Rheinpfalz, the current name (lat. Palatium = palace) derives from the Palatines of the Holy Roman Empire who resided in the city of Heidelberg from the 13th to the middle of the 18th century. There are first references to viticulture long before the Romans in Celtic graves as early as 550 BC, which were found in Laumersheim and Bad Dürkheim. After the Romans withdrew from the area, viticulture was revived in the 7th century with the rise of the monasteries. In the 8th century, over a hundred wine-growing villages are already mentioned. In the 12th and 13th centuries, the first vineyard names appeared in this area, some of which have been preserved in the individual vineyard names to this day.
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The Wine lexicon helps me to stay up to date and refresh my knowledge. Thank you for this Lexicon that will never end in terms of topicality! That's what makes it so exciting to visit more often.
Thorsten Rahn
Restaurantleiter, Sommelier, Weindozent und Autor; Dresden