The Nahe is a diverse region
producing many kinds of wines. It has a dry climate
(as low as 20 inches per year of rainfall), with
late summer rains typical before the harvest.
Three-quarters of vineyard lands are planted on
hillsides. Its finer products share qualities
of both Mosel and Rheinhessen, with nearly a quarter
fermented dry or medium-dry; they are slightly
undervalued for their quality.
A growing percentage of vineyard area is devoted
to Riesling, which became the main varietal by
the mid-1990's and constitutes around one-fourth
of the total vineyard area. The best einzellagen
wines, many from private and estate-owned properties,
have an ingratiating, open Riesling perfume tempered
by fine acidity and slate. Cask aging in large
old oak barrels (giving only the remotest oak
flavor) is typical in this area.
Traditionally, the most planted Nahe grape has
been M?Thurgau, though its percentage has decreased
in the last couple of decades. The majority of
M?Thurgau is sold in Bereich and Grosslage wines,
with quite a bit going into the German sea of
Liebfraumilch (it makes up 3% of the total volume),
but in the Nahe it can also make a good single
varietal wine. Silvaner has been used here for
blending into supermarket type wines, but its
acreage is also diminishing.
Two main cooperatives handle about half of the
region's wines, one mainly for bulk wines and
the other processing half the area's Riesling,
all sold in bottle rather than bulk.
