MITTELBOURG

The origin of the name of Mittelburg, Mittelberg, « the hill in the middle », probably due to its geographical location: this hill is indeed set halfway between the city of Soultz and the Vosges chain.

In the shape of a dome, this typical relief of Vosgian foothill peaks at 360 meters altitude. Its slopes can range up to 45% in the steepest plots. A real outpost, it dominates the city of Soultz and faces the plain of Alsace, the Black Forest and in clear weather the Bernese Alps. Its South exposure makes it a particularly solar terroir. At its top and on its northern slope there is a forest of ancient orchards.

Its particularity lies in the nature of its basement: framed by two geological faults, it is the only relief on limestone of the Rimbach valley. These are limestone conglomerates formed during the Oligocene era (-35 million years). Hard and older limestones formed during the Jurassic period (-150 million years) as well as pink sandstone rocks from the grizzly massifs adjacent to Mittelburg are also found. The soil of the calcaro-grey type is light, stony and very shallow: 30 to 50 cm before touching the limestone slab, which forces the vine to develop its roots in the interstices of the rock to draw water already rare. The red-ocre colour of the soil is also remarkable and is due to the large presence of iron oxides.