📍 Mosel

Mosel is a German wine appellation along the river Mosel and its tributaries the Saar and Ruwer, from Perl to Koblenz, mostly in Rhineland-Palatinate and partly in Saarland. In 2025 it had 8,287 ha of vineyards; Riesling covered about 62 % of the area, and white varieties 90 %.

From south-west to north-east come the Obermosel, the Trier basin and the Middle and Lower Mosel. On the Obermosel the river flows through shell limestone and Keuper; further down it cuts into the Devonian slates and quartzites of the Rhenish Slate Mountains. The vineyards lie at 65–375 m, the mean annual temperature is 9.7 °C and rainfall 760 mm. The German Wine Institute calls the Bremmer Calmont the steepest vineyard in Europe.

The name Mosel has been protected in the EU since 18.09.1973. The zone has six districts: Burg Cochem, Bernkastel, Obermosel, Moseltor, Saar and Ruwer. In 2024 Riesling covered 5,266 ha, Müller-Thurgau 714 ha and Elbling 441 ha; since 2023 Spätburgunder has been the third variety. Burgundy varieties grow on the limestones of the Obermosel and Moseltor. Yields are capped at 125 hl/ha.

The terms Kabinett, Spätlese and Auslese refer to the ripeness of the grapes, not to sweetness. Under the 2011 specification, Riesling Kabinett needed at least 73 °Oe, Spätlese 80 °Oe and Auslese 88 °Oe. Such wines are not enriched with sugar and receive an official control number.

Why it matters to you. A Kabinett or Spätlese can be either dry or sweet: the term itself says nothing about sweetness. A district name such as Saar or Ruwer narrows the origin. The law does not set the colour of the bottle, so you cannot recognise a Mosel wine by it.