RESIDUAL LOESS ON COASTAL SANDS – This combination results in a calcareous, dry location, rich in base nutrients with moderate ripening conditions. This is a soil with interestingly disparate properties. The subsoil consists of very coarse Tertiary quartz sand. Over this horizon follows a calcareous, silty clay mixture containing loess and Tertiary coarse coastal sand as well as clay. This layer is only half a meter thick, but very fertile due to the presence of loess and mineral-rich clay. The vines are well supplied with water and nutrients. In contrast, the decalcified coarse sand of the subsoil is a very dry and nutrient-poor substrate. Although this part of the profile is easy for roots to penetrate, there is very little for them to utilize. The traces of clay have a very low nutrient capacity and the soil cation exchangers are almost completely saturated with sodium. Is this the salt from the ancient sea? In hot summers the vine must prepare for meagre times.

THE ROCK
About 30 million years ago, the coast of the Tertiary (middle Oligocene) sea followed the edge of the Taunus. Geologists call the coarse coastal sediments “lower coastal sands”. In the Rheingau these yellow to brown sediments are composed of rounded sand grains as well as quartz and quartzite gravel. The fine-grained sands also contain mussels, snails and other invertebrates. Over 300 mussel species have been identified – a testimony to a rich marine fauna.

DISTRIBUTION
The lower coastal sands are found in the higher regions (150 – 230 m above sea level) in many Rheingau communities (Johannisberg, Winkel, Mittelheim, Oestrich, Hallgarten, Hattenheim). The coarser gravels and sands of the upper coastal sands are found at even higher altitudes (up to 300 m) and may even be found along the edge of the Taunus mountain range. Large stones within the upper coastal sands can be found near Castle Vollrads or the Hildegardis chapel in Eibingen. The mica-rich, clay sands with marine fossils (oysters) are found near the