Overview
Wehlener Sonnenuhr is an Einzellage at Wehlen, a district of Bernkastel-Kues in the Mittelmosel, and one of the most famous vineyard names in Germany. The site is named for the sundial (Sonnenuhr) erected among its rocks in 1842 by Jodocus Prüm, an ancestor of the Prüm wine families of Wehlen, who built sundials at both Wehlen and Zeltingen to give vineyard workers the time of day. The VDP classifies the site VDP.GROSSE LAGE; the classified area is commonly given as about 40 hectares, while the mapped Einzellage is somewhat larger, on the order of 46-47 hectares. Riesling accounts for more than 99 percent of plantings. For collective-site labeling the vineyard belongs to the Grosslage Münzlay.
Terroir & Position
The vineyard rises from the Mosel directly across the river from the village of Wehlen, from roughly 110 to 320 meters above sea level, with gradients of 60 percent and, in places, up to 100 percent. Exposure is southwest. The soil is pure, medium-depth weathered Devonian slate with a very high stone content; the dark slate stores daytime heat and releases it at night, and the river surface adds reflected light and warmth. Vines are traditionally trained on single stakes, as is usual on the steepest Mosel slopes. The slope continues into the neighboring Zeltinger Sonnenuhr, which shares the sundial tradition but is a separate site.
Producers
Weingut Joh. Jos. Prüm, founded in 1911 and based in Wehlen, holds about five hectares and is the producer most closely identified with the site; its Sonnenuhr Kabinett through Auslese bottlings are reference points for classic fruity-style Mosel Riesling. Weingut S.A. Prüm, a separate estate from the same family, holds more than six hectares. Weingut Kerpen of Wehlen has the majority of its vineyard land in the Sonnenuhr and bottles it from Kabinett to Grosses Gewächs. The Wegeler estate in Bernkastel (Geheimrat J. Wegeler) produces a Wehlener Sonnenuhr Grosses Gewächs. Other holders with documented bottlings include Schloss Lieser, Max Ferd. Richter, Selbach-Oster, Dr. Hermann, and Dr. Loosen, whose Alte Reben Grosses Gewächs comes from old ungrafted parcels.
What to Know
Sonnenuhr is a shared Mosel vineyard name; the village name on the label identifies the site, and Wehlener Sonnenuhr is the most celebrated of the group. The sundial of 1842 still stands in the vines. Wines from the site are prized for combining delicacy with density: filigreed fruit, ripe but fine acidity, and the capacity to age for decades, particularly at Spätlese and Auslese level from the leading estates.