The winery is located in the municipality of Nackenheim (Nierstein area) in the German wine-growing region of
Rheinhessen. It was founded in 1890 by the Mainz banker Carl Gunderloch (1846-1935). He is considered a pioneer of quality winegrowing on the Rhine and was a co-founder of today's
VDP. Until 2015, Gunderloch's great-great-granddaughter Agnes ran the winery with her husband Fritz Hasselbach. Since then, it has been run in the sixth family generation by son Johannes Hasselbach. He is assisted by cellar technician Markus Weickert. The vineyards cover 15 hectares of vines in the single vineyard sites of
Pettenthal (Nierstein) and
Rothenberg (Nackenheim) in the Roter Hang
(Rhine Front). They are planted with 85% Riesling and smaller numbers of Silvaner, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Sauvignon Blanc and Blauer Portugieser. Management is carried out under the premise of the house, "that it must never be our goal to impose our will on nature"
Management is carried out under the premise of the house, "that it must never be our goal to impose our will on nature". Through
short pruning, an average yield of around 50 hl/ha is aimed for. The aim is to achieve a balance between aromas, fruit acidity and berry ripeness in order to obtain concentrated wines with a
mineral character. The German writer Carl Zuckmayer (1896-1977) has the character Jean Baptist Gunderloch appear in his comedy "
Der fröhliche Weinberg" (
The Merry Vineyard), which was first performed in 1926, and he praises a Riesling Spätlese Nackenheimer Rothenberg from the 1920 vintage in the highest terms. In the cellar of the winery, there are even still some bottles of this legendary
wine of the century. The winery is a member of the
VDP (Association of German Prädikat Wine Estates). Since 1996, the Balbach Erben vineyard has also been leased
