This tradition was slow and sporadic and continued until the seventeenth
century when the monks ( how often monks have played a role in wine
history is remarkable ) of the Cistercian monastery at Eberbach discovered
that the transparent Rheingau reds could not compete with the deeply
colored French wines. Consequently they ordered their tenant growers
to use only white wine plantings and to remove all else. Exactly what
variety of Riesling grape the monks wanted planted was not stated but
it is believed to be Riesling since by this time the qualities of the
grape had become known.
The first documented evidence we have of the varietal was a sale that
took place on March 13, 1435. The cellar log of Count Katzenelnbogen
at Ruesselsheim shows that Klaus Kleinfish sold the Count six vines
of Riesling for 22 solidi. There are many other contenders for the honor
of "first planting" ( the Wachau in Austria, Westhofen in
Rheinhessen and the Alsace region all contend with dates of 1232, 1402,
and 1348 respectively, to name just a few), but all this means is that
from the midfourteenth century Riesling was becoming popular. In
1464 twelve hundred "Ruesseling" (Riesling) vines were purchased
by the St. Jacob Hospice, today, part of the Vereinigte Hospitien of
Trier. A specific vineyard in Worms "Ruessling hinder Kirssgarten"
(Riesling behind the cherry orchard) was described in 1490, and a "Rissling
wingart" at Pfeddersheim in the Rheinhessen in 1511, attests to
the spread of the grape.
Evidently Hieronymus Bock was aware of the grape as a Latin version
of his book on herbs (1552) describes it. Surprisingly the modern spelling
of the word is used. A later version of this book (1577) stated that
"Riesling was growing in the Mosel, the Rhein, and the environs
of Worms". By the seventeenth century "Ruessling", according
to a journal published in 1703, was planted throughout the Palatinate.
The most important development in the spread of Riesling as the "grape
of Germany" took place at the Benedictine Abbey in Johannisberg
in the Rheingau.In 1716 the PrinceAbbey of Fulda purchased the
rundown priory. The vineyards, which were in total neglect, were completely
restored and replanted with Riesling vines within five years. In 1720/21
294,000 vines were planted. The Riesling vines were purchased from Ruedesheim,
Eberbach, and Floersheim, further indicating the extent of the grape.
Schloss Johannisberg, of course, set the standards for the grape, and
other areas soon decreed that Riesling should be the grape planted.
In 1744, for example, the Bishop of Speyer, Cardinal Christoph von Hutten
insisted upon the destruction of Elbling vines and the planting of Riesling.
Even more important was the proclamation of Clemens Wenzeslaus, Elector
of Trier, on May 8,1787 that all inferior vines be dug up and replanted
with noble varietals. He meant Riesling, and the MoselSaarRuwer
area celebrates this year as the bicentennial of the Wenzeslaus
pronouncement.
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