Rheinhessen

The town of Bingen has a population of around 25.000 inhabitants, and is located at the confluence of the Nahe river with the Rhine river, at the foot of the Rochusberg mountain, in the federal state of Rheinland-Pfalz in Germany. A Celtic settlement by the name of Bingium was established here in pre-Roman times, as this is an important intersection of trade routes. The Romans started growing wine here. The Nahe river provides a natural border between two growing regions. The suburb of Bingen-Bingerbrück is located on the left of the Nahe river, and is part of the Nahe winegrowing region. Here you will find the regional site Schlosskapelle, which includes the vineyard sites Hildegardisbrünnchen, Abtei Rupertsberg (sometimes written as Ruppertsberg), Römerberg and Klostergarten.The names remind one of the famous mystic and abbess Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179), who worked at the Rupertsberg abbey. To the right of the river is the Rheinhessen growing region, including the town of Bingen proper, with its suburbs Büdesheim, Dietersheim, Dromersheim, Gaulsheim, Kempten and Sponsheim. Some of the individual vineyard sites straddle communal boundaries, and are part of the regional site St. Rochuskapelle. The individual sites are Bubenstück (Büdesheim), Honigberg (Dromersheim), Kapellenberg (Kempten), Kirchberg (Kempten), Klosterweg (Dromersheim), Mainzer Weg (Büdesheim, Dromersheim), Osterberg (Büdesheim), Pfarrgarten (Gaulsheim, Kempten), Rosengarten (Bingen-Stadt, Büdesheim), Scharlachberg (Büdesheim), Schelmenstück (Dietersheim, Büdesheim), Schlossberg Schwätzerchen (Büdesheim, Kempten, Bingen Stadt) and Schwarzenberg (Büdesheim). One of the three districts in Rheinhessen is also named after Bingen. The total vineyard area of the town and its suburbs runs to around 650 hectares. Well-known wine and brandy producers include Kruger-Rumpf, Scharlachberg, and Villa Sachsen - RHEINGRAF. To the north of Bingen lies the Mittelrhein growing region, located along the Rhine and stretching as far as Bonn. An old anecdote describes why a corkscrew is also known in Rheinhessen as a Bingen pencil.