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What land costs
Good years and bad
Appellations
Famous vineyards
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Mosel in a minute
- The grapes
- Riesling
- What it tastes like
- Lime, green apple and peach, with low alcohol and a mouth-watering finish.
RieslingGood to know
The vineyards cling to slate hillsides above the river, some too steep for machines. Wines range from bone dry to very sweet.
On the label
Look for Trocken if you want dry. Kabinett, Spätlese and Auslese mean the grapes were picked riper and riper, and the wines are often sweeter.
What the land costs
The dearest vineyards here are in Mosel, top steep sites: ≈$167,895–≈$447,720 a hectare (2024). Zone by zone
The business side
The Mosel is about 8,700 hectares, much of it on slopes too steep for machinery. Its collectible tier is tiny — the Auslese, Beerenauslese and Trockenbeerenauslese of Egon Müller, J.J. Prüm, Fritz Haag and a few others — and production of the top wines is measured in hundreds of half-bottles. Labour cost per hectare is the highest of any region on this site.
Economics in brief
The Deutsches Weininstitut reports that steep-slope viticulture costs several times flat-land viticulture per hectare; many marginal sites have been abandoned since the 1980s while the great sites (Scharzhofberg, Wehlener Sonnenuhr, Brauneberger Juffer Sonnenuhr) have appreciated. At the top, a Trockenbeerenauslese from Egon Müller can be the most expensive white wine sold at auction in a given year, from a production of a few hundred bottles.
Facts and figures
Good years and bad
All regions →| Year | How the year was rated | The growing season |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Good | |
| 2021 | Very Good | |
| 2020 | Very Good | |
| 2019 | Excellent | |
| 2018 | Very Good | |
| 2017 | Very Good | |
| 2015 | Excellent | |
| 2011 | Very Good | |
| 2010 | Very Good | |
| 2009 | Excellent | |
| 2007 | Very Good | |
| 2006 | Very Good | |
| 2005 | Excellent | |
| 2003 | Good | |
| 2001 | Excellent |
Who makes the famous wines here
All producers →
ProducerEgon Müller (Scharzhof)The most expensive white wines in the world: Scharzhofberger Trockenbeerenauslese from about 8 hectares of…
ProducerJoh. Jos. PrümWehlener Sonnenuhr's reference estate: about 20 hectares of steep Mosel slate, Auslese and Goldkapsel…Famous wines from here
All →
Egon Müller, Scharzhofberger Riesling TrockenbeerenausleseJoh. Jos. Prüm, Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling AusleseAppellations
What a bottle costs to make here
All models →
The numbers behind the region: land, grapes, yields and costs
| Input | Range | Unit | Year | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Land — what a hectare of vineyard sells for | ||||
| Vineyard land, Mosel average | 15,000–60,000 | EUR/ha | 2024 | Statistisches Landesamt Rheinland-Pfal… |
| Vineyard land, Mosel top steep sites | 150,000–400,000 | EUR/ha | 2024 | Deutsches Weininstitut |
| Grapes — what growers are paid | ||||
| Riesling must, Mosel, per litreQuality-wine Riesling must €1.00 a litre in mid-October 2024; Weißburgunder €1.20, Grau-… | 1 | EUR/litre | 2024 | Moselwein e.V. |
| Labour — farming and harvest | ||||
| Vineyard labour, steep slate slopes | 20,000–40,000 | EUR/ha/year | 2024 | Deutsches Weininstitut: steep-slope vi… |
Where the inputs come from
- Statistisches Landesamt Rheinland-Pfalz, Kaufwerte für Weinbauland
- Deutsches Weininstitut; trade reporting on Bernkastel/Wehlen transactions
- Moselwein e.V., autumn press conference, October 2024 (must prices in mid-October)
- Deutsches Weininstitut: steep-slope viticulture several times flat-land cost; 1,500+ hours/ha reported
Sources
- Weinanbaugebiet Mosel — Zahlen, Deutsches Weininstitut, 2025. Retrieved 3 September 2026.