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Main Page > Regions & Wineries > Wine region BOHEMIA > Sub-region Mělník

The vineyards of Mělník are mostly on a limestone bedding strata of argillite, which is sometimes covered by layers of sandy-clay. Soils are light, calefactory and result in excellent conditions for the cultivation of black grapes. Winemakers even in the Middle Ages did justice to their grapes, concentrating mainly on the Rulandské modré, which arrived here from Burgundy with a French winemaking family, from whom the local population soon learnt to cultivate their grapes in the Burgundian style. The cultivar Ryzlink rýnský was not planted here until the 19th century, just as the modern Modrý Portugal and Svatovavřinecké. Mělník red wines achieved a particular fame in the 15th and 16th centuries, due to their delectable taste, as attested to by Pavel Stránský in 1633, leading to plentiful quantities being shipped to the markets in Prague. Even in Roudnice there was always a preponderance of red wine. But the hard, loamy soils also used to give distinguished wines made from the Sylvánské zelené cultivar. In Prague several vineyards have been preserved in their traditional locations such as Troja, and south of Prague in Karlštejn, where there is a Vine Research Institute which is engaged in the preservation and study of the genetic fund of Vitis vinifera. Most vineyards in this sub-region are today planted with the Müller Thurgau grape variety.