Summary
Weingut Hauck lies in Bermersheim vor der Höhe, a small winegrowing village in the heart of Rheinhessen. The family has grown wine here since 1727; since the year 2000 it has committed the estate entirely to wine. Across around 30 hectares grow mainly classic Pinot varieties, Silvaner and Riesling – complemented by a few unusual grapes such as Auxerrois and Albariño. The wines are fruit-driven and mineral, with finesse and balance. The estate is run today by the Hauck family, with daughter Jana Hauck having taken on responsibility.
History
The estate's roots reach back to 1727 – winegrowing has been part of the family history ever since. For generations the business was, as was long common in Rheinhessen, a mixed farm with arable crops and vines.
The decisive turning point came around the year 2000: Heinz Günter and Heike Hauck converted the operation entirely to winegrowing and step by step developed it into a modern estate. As a qualified oenologist (Diplom-Oenologe), Heinz Günter Hauck is responsible for the cellar. With Jana Hauck, the next generation is now at the helm: she earned a doctorate as an economist, completed her wine training and internships at renowned addresses, and today leads the estate. In this way the estate combines a long family tradition with a clearly contemporary outlook.
Location & Terroir
Bermersheim vor der Höhe lies right in the middle of Rheinhessen, Germany's largest wine region. The village is best known as the birthplace of Hildegard of Bingen (1098–1179) – a name that still echoes today in one of the estate's sites, the Hildegardisberg.
The climate of Rheinhessen is mild and comparatively dry; the gentle hilly landscape and the predominantly limestone and loess soils offer good conditions for both fresh, mineral whites and full-bodied reds. The estate farms several sites around the village and can thus draw on different soils and exposures. Close-to-nature cultivation with cover crops between the rows and the deliberate building of humus is intended to keep the soils alive and the vines resilient.
Style & Philosophy
The estate's aim is to produce wines with fruit and minerality as well as finesse and balance. To that end the family relies on close-to-nature, sustainable viticulture: cover crops between the rows, organic fertilisation using pomace, and refraining from insecticides to protect beneficial insects – as well as a cellar powered by solar energy. The approach is deliberately pragmatic and undogmatic, with the quality of each individual wine at the centre.
Curiosity also shapes the choice of grapes: alongside the Rheinhessen classics Riesling and Silvaner and the Pinot varieties, the estate also plants unusual grapes such as Auxerrois and Albariño, which comes from Spain and Portugal. As a member of the Generation Riesling initiative, the estate also stands for the younger winegrowing generation's ambition to actively shape quality and the future.
Notable Sites & Wines
The range is broad and covers many styles. Two thirds of the vineyard area is planted with white varieties and one third with reds. Among the most important grapes and wines are:
- Riesling and Silvaner – the classic white wines of Rheinhessen
- Weißburgunder (Pinot Blanc) and Grauburgunder (Pinot Gris) – full-bodied Pinots that pair well with food
- Spätburgunder (Pinot Noir) and St. Laurent – the estate's leading reds
- Unusual grapes such as Auxerrois and Albariño
- Noble-sweet specialities up to Trockenbeerenauslese and ice wine, as well as bottle-fermented Sekt
Several sites around Bermersheim are farmed for these wines, including the Hildegardisberg, named after the saint.
Awards
Weingut Hauck is listed in wine guides as one of the good addresses in the region and regularly collects prizes at wine competitions. As a committed family business with a sustainable outlook and a broad, carefully tended range, it is among the solidly established estates of Rheinhessen.