On stony ground
OK, it's true: the really rocky vineyards are are those of the Mosel and the Middle Rhine Valley. There you have to look for the soil, between the stones. Quite the opposite is true for the vineyards of Hochheim – here you have to look for the stones. And yet this location is called “Stein” or “Stone”.

The location “Stein” was named after the stony soils found here. Although the soils contain sand and gravel, the main component is fertile weathered loess. The soils have developed on an underground of calcareous clay.

The soils are remarkable for their diversity. Only very few locations in Hochheim contain such a wide range of diferent substrates: gravels from the Main river terrace, ice age mud flows, weathered loess, wind-blown sand and Tertiary clay marls. The south-facing, and therefore warm, slopes were carved out of the landscape by the River Main. A a result, the upper part of the Hochheim vineyards receive the highest solar radiation. These soils warm quickly during the course of the day, promoting an early blossom and a long vegetation period. Cool air flows down the slopes at night. Because of these beneficial climatic conditions this location is classified as “First Growth Rheingau”.