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The viticulture of the mosel in 19th century
In the year 1815 the bloom time began for the viticulture at Mosel-Saar-Ruwer. The viennese congres desired to give these area to the Prussian state, with its large internal market. By a duty on wine Prussia favoured its own viticulture substantially.
When the cultivated areas were extended , the Riesling wine got ist way, the mosel prospered. These lucky years for the winegrowers lasted only for a short time. It ended suddenly with the beginning of the customs union in the year 1834. The protective duty for wine got droped and the wine from south German, Rhinegau, Rhinehesse and Pfalz flowed into large quantities into Prussia.
The winegrowers and wine merchats of the mosel started a protest, but without any effect.
The prices for moselwine went down more and more ( 70%). The " association for the promotion of the wine culture at mosel and saar wrote 1838: These customs union states (south german and hessian ) can produce on same floor space with much fewer costs and work than the winegrowers at the mosel.
To all misfortune now, another set of bad years began. The moselwine come not to ripe ones, so that the wine remained unsalable.
The mosel-winegrowers found no buyer for the wine or he had to sell him for a ridiculus price.The wine often stored in the winerower barrel 6 to 8 years and than he had to walk frequently to emergency auctions. Now the barrel was more expensive than the wine storing in it. Also the price for the vineyard naturally falled down.
In Kinheim, a village near Lösnich, a four years old vineyard was sold for 11 pennies a stick. Sometimes the stake was more value than the land and ground. Because of the large emergnecy, many winegrowers sold their vineyard and emigrated to america and australia. According to own statements , this emergency of the mosel winegrowers , was one of the reasons for Karl Marx, to be concerned with economic questions. He stayed in Trier and reported in different newspapers, of the emergency in mosel viticulture. At last a tax of grape juice was given by the government and the emergency of the winegrowers would be greater. It was the beginning of V.A.T.
Source: Yearbook of the Bernkastel-Kues 1985
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