Domdechaney

Total area: 10.1 hectares
Weingut Künstler: 0.3 hectares

Vineyard
The name "Domdechaney" pays homage to the site's former owner, the dean of the Cathedral of Mainz. Yields from this particular site were delivered to him as a fee. In 1775, the dean used a hand-powered fire-fighting pump to irrigate his vineyards with water from the Main River. His efforts resulted in an infestation with noble rot and in gorgeous wines – a discovery of the technique of Spätlese parallel to what happened on the Johannisberg that same year. Unfortunately, the Hochheim winegrowing community failed to understand the importance of the discovery.

Wine: Might and Noblesse
Ample warmth and an abundance of mineral nutrients promote fully ripe fruit. Riesling wines from the Domdechaney site are thus known for their substance, concentration and body. They are also marked by distinctive, intense aromas of ripe fruits such as honeydew melon and lychee. Calcareous clay marl lends a stunning minerality and a characteristic but nevertheless gentle acidity. The wines need at least two years of aging to reveal their full concentration and aromatic complexity. This unique vineyard consistently produces distinctive, powerful and long-lived wines.

Soil
The highly fertile soil of the Domdechaney site is built around a base of loamy loess. The slope beneath the Catholic Church in Hochheim became home to a significant loess deposit, leavened with older pebbles from the Main River. Wind-blown dust would later weather into clay-rich loamy loess with an abundant supply of mineral nutrients. In an effort to enhance the minerality of the soil, pale calcareous clay marl was spread on top and then incorporated through the Rigolen process. Since the last Rigolen work, the soil has developed into humus-enriched topsoil notable for its extraordinary nutrient reservoir. The upper strata are also rich in calcium carbonate and organic matter. The heavy clay marl and dense, clay-rich loamy loess retain water magnificently. Even in the hottest summers, the vines are always excellently supplied with water and nutrients.