Oldest vineyard classification in the world discovered

Viticultural historian and journalist Dr. Daniel Deckers has discovered a map in the Wiesbaden state library that is considered to tbe the world's oldest classification of vineyard sites, reports the Wiesbadener Tagblatt newspaper. The „Rhein-Gau-Karte“ map dated 1867 is reproduced in the book „Der nassauische Weinbau“ (Viticulture in Nassau) by Friedrich Wilhelm Dünkelberg, published by the Limbarth press in Wiesbaden.

Apparently one can no longer reconstruct which criteria Dünkelberg applied in classifying the vineyards as being first or second class or "of lesser quality", said Deckers in his statement to the newspaper. However, the classification is in most cases the same as the current one. For instance, the first class includes vineyard sites such as Schloss Johannisberg, Rüdesheimer Rottland, Hochheimer Domdechaney and Kiedricher Gräfenberg.

Wilhelm Weil, chairman of the Verband Deutscher Prädikatsweingüter (VDP) in the Rheingau region, sees the historical find as a confirmation of the strategy to establish the profile of the Rheingau by means of its individual vineyard sites: the focus was placed on the value of the vineyards, and "we can achieve nothing without our terroir".CS/Wiesbadener Tagblatt)