The Moselle: the world’s largest area of steep-slope vineyards

The Moselle: the world’s largest area of steep-slope vineyards

Vineyards on what are known as steep slopes cover around 3500 hectares along the Moselle. This is considered unique anywhere in the world and makes the Moselle landscape something special. Our premium holiday homes Annika, Tommy and Susi at the quiet, idyllic Waldsee Rieden are an ideal base from which to explore everything the region has to offer.

The Moselle and its wine growing

The Moselle is the oldest wine-growing region in Germany. Its landscape is shaped by the extremely steep slopes along the river valleys. Romans and Celts began growing wine here more than 2,000 years ago. Today there are more than 60 million vines and an annual production averaging 700,000 to 800,000 hectolitres.

Grape varieties grown on the Moselle

The grape varieties grown in the Moselle region include Riesling, Pinot Blanc (Weißburgunder), Müller-Thurgau, Elbling, Chardonnay and Auxerrois among the whites. The most common reds are Pinot Noir (Spätburgunder), Dornfelder, Regent and Pinot Meunier (Müllerrebe).

The trademark-protected Moselle wines cover every quality level, from Qualitätswein right through to Prädikatswein.

What makes the Moselle vineyards special

What sets the Moselle region apart are its steep slopes. Around 40 per cent of the entire vineyard area counts as steep slope. It is defined by a particularly steep gradient of more than 30 per cent. The Calmont in the district of Cochem has a gradient of 68 degrees, which makes it the steepest vineyard in the world.

The Moselle year is filled with countless wine festivals and tastings. There are funfairs and music festivals as well. The main season for events runs from March to October. The dates and details are published every year on the regional websites of the Moselle towns, and the events calendar is well worth a look.

The prettiest towns on the Moselle

Bernkastel-Kues counts as one of the most striking and most beautiful half-timbered towns. Trier is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and full of Roman buildings worth seeing. The lovely town of Cochem has picturesque narrow lanes and a chairlift up to the Pinnerkreuz viewpoint. Cochem also has a fairy-tale castle, Cochem Castle. The historic town of Traben-Trarbach, with its beautiful houses and the bridge across to the other bank of the Moselle, is well worth a visit too.

Castles, palaces and historic buildings

The Moselle is lined with an immense number of interesting buildings, among them Eltz Castle, Veldenz Castle, Trutzeltz Castle, von der Leyen Castle, Cochem Castle, Thurant Castle, the Mont Royal fortress and Lieser Castle.

The Moselle is well worth seeing, but it is better known for the sheer number of visitors it draws; the Eifel is a noticeably quieter region. That makes it the place for a genuinely relaxed holiday. A holiday home in the Eifel is the perfect base for any number of trips into the surrounding countryside and the wider region. The Eifel also has an astonishing wealth of interesting places and attractions, and a remarkably idyllic landscape of maars, the crater lakes of the region, along with lakes, volcanoes and extensive mixed woodland.

The Eifel is the ideal place for a holiday. From here you can explore the Moselle and the Rhine, the world-famous Nürburgring, the fairy-tale Bürresheim Castle, Ehrenbreitstein Fortress, the geyser at Andernach (the tallest cold-water geyser on earth), the Hohe Acht, the Deutsches Schieferbergwerk slate mine in Mayen, the Vulkan Brauerei in Mendig and the Bitburger brewery.

The Eifel is a wonderful place for children too. Tollipark Mayen, Klotten Wildlife and Adventure Park, Neuwied Zoo, Daun Wildlife Park and the Teufelsschlucht dinosaur park are just a few of the days out within easy reach of the Waldsee Rieden.

A short drive from both the Moselle and the Rhine, the private Eifel holiday park at Waldsee Rieden gives you first-class places to stay, surrounded by forest. The site is laid out in terraces in a wonderfully quiet and idyllic setting. If you are looking to rent a bungalow or a house in the Eifel, our three premium holiday homes “Susi”, “Tommy” and “Annika” in Rieden offer you the best of it. They are easy to reach and count among the loveliest places to stay in the area.