The Eichelmann WeinGuide Deutschland 2020 - one of the 5 main wine guides in Germany (along with GaultMillau, Vinum, Feinschmecker and Falstaff) - was released in November 2019 in Heidelberg.
In the Eichelmann WeinGuide Deutschland 2020, Gerhard Eichelmann presents almost 1000 winemakers and reviews more than 11000 wines. For the rating of the winemakers, he employs a system that awards a winery up to five stars, where 5 stars indicate “world class, top international producers”. There are about 2 dozens of German winemakers in this group.
Additionally, in each issue of the Eichelmann WeinGuide Deutschland a (1) Rising Star of the Year as well as the producers of the best collections of (2) red wines, (3) white wines, (4) noble-sweet and (5) sparkling wines are named. Further, Gerhard Eichelmann presents (6) a “Classic of the Year” Wine and (7) an Honorary Award for Lifetime Achievement.
Best White Wine Collection: Weingut Bischel, Appenheim (Rheinhessen)
Rheinhessen
19 hectares
20% Riesling, 20% Spätburgunder, 15% Weissburgunder, 15% Grauburgunder
Weingut Bischel from Appenheim in Rheinhessen receives the Best White Wine Collection Award. Christian and Matthias Runkel have accelerated considerably in the last few years; frour years ago they were the Rising Star of the Year. And since then, they have improved further, with a great white wine collection this year, says Gerhard Eichelmann, explaining the choice of editors.
Besides stunning Riesling they produce a gorgeous Pinot-Blanc with an enchanting bouquet of flowers and vanilla, and wonderful, elegant, Pinot-Noirs. Their efforts were awarded with being asked to join the VDP. As of January 1, 2019 they are the newest member of the VDP.
Best Red Wine Collection: Weingut Klopfer, Weinstadt-Großheppach (Württemberg)
Württemberg
11 hectares
25% Riesling, 15% Trollinger, 10% Lemberger, 8% Spätburgunder
Weingut Klopfer from Großheppach in the Remstal receives the Best Red Wine Collection Award. Wolfgang and Christoph Klopfer have steadily improved in recent years, presenting collections at a very high level. This year for the second time in a row a Lemberger of Weingut Klopfer was the highest rated Lemberger, explains Gerhard Eichelmann at the award ceremony.
Best Noble-sweet Collection: Weingut Dr. Corvers-Kauter, Oestrich-Winkel (Rheingau)
Rheingau
29 hectares
75% Riesling, 20% Spätburgunder
Weingut Dr. Corvers-Kauter in Oestrich-Winkel in the Rheingau receives the Best Noble-sweet Collection Award. In the last years, the collections of noble-sweet wines have steadily improved with the vintage 2018 collection reaching a new high, explain the editors.
Best Sekt Collection: Sektkellerei Andres & Mugler, Ruppertsberg (Pfalz)
Sektkellerei Andres & Mugler in Ruppertsberg in the Pfalz receives the Best Sekt Collection Award. Year after year, they present beautifully reliable sparkling wine collections at a very high level, and have been among the top sparkling wine producers in Germany for two decades.
Rising Star of the Year: Weingut Jülg, Schweigen-Rechtenbach (Pfalz)
Pfalz
18 hectares
40% Riesling, 35% Weissburgunder, 35% Grauburgunder
Rising Star of the Year is Weingut Jülg from Schweigen-Rechtenbach in South Palatinate. The Jülg family showed us their strongest collection so far this year, which is led by the wines of the recently introduced top category Opus-Oskar, which is dedicated to winery founder Oskar Jülg, explains the editor Jens Wagner, who is responsible for the Pfalz Region.
Discovery of the Year: Winzerhof Linder, Endingen (Baden)
The Eichelmann WeinGuide has always invested a lot of time in the search for new wine talents, and this should become even more important in the future. Therefore, for the first time the Eichelmann WeinGuide contains a Discovery of the Year. Ronald Linder is a career changer. The media engineer and aspiring filmmaker took over the winery of the parents in Endingen at the beginning of the 2010s and changed radically to biodynamic farming; he is now Demeter and Ecovin certified. The wines all have a multi-layered texture, they are exciting and at the same time there is silence in the wines, explains Thomas Veigel, Baden's editor.
Klassiker des Jahres/ Classic of the Year: Kirchberg Oberrotweil Spätburgunder GG, Weingut Salwey, Oberrotweil (Baden)
Baden
41 hectares
40% Grauburgunder, 40% Spätburgunder
In addition to the wineries of the year, Gerhard Eichelmann presented the classic wine of the year, which will become part of the "Mondo Classics Library" This is a collection of the great wines of Germany. Every year a wine from a great vineyard is added. For Eichelmann, the classic wine of the year is a wine that offers high quality, shows a clear for every vintage and can be considered a classic, a prototype with regard to the grape variety and the region. This year, the choice fell on the Kirchberg vineyard in Oberrotweil in the Kaiserstuhl with a Spätburgunder Großes Gewächs of von Konrad Salwey: A fascinating wine, complex, clean and sustainable, praises Gerhard Eichelmann.
Honorary Award for Lifetime Achievement: Werner Näkel, Weingut Meyer-Näkel, Dernau (Ahr)
Ahr
19 hectares
75% Spätburgunder, 15% Frühburgunder
Werner Näkel receives the Honorary Award for Lifetime Achievement this year. Werner Näkel is the most renowned winemaker in the Ahr Region, and is importantly responsible for the boom that the region has experienced over the last twenty years. When he started producing dry wines in the eighties and aging red wines in oak barrels, many people were puzzled. Today wines from the Ahr are mostly dry and aging in barrique has become the rule for top level red wines. Werner Näkel is one of the handful of winemakers to whom German wine today owes its high reputation, explains Gerhard Eichelmann at the award ceremony.
Eichelmann WeinGuide Deutschland
For previous years, see:
Germany's 29 Best Winemakers - Eichelmann WeinGuide Deutschland 2019
Best German Wines and Winemakers – Eichelmann WeinGuide Deutschland 2019 Awards, Germany
Germany's 28 Best Winemakers - Eichelmann WeinGuide Deutschland 2018
Best German Wines and Winemakers – Eichelmann WeinGuide Deutschland 2018 Awards, Germany
Germany's 27 Best Winemakers - Eichelmann WeinGuide Deutschland 2017
Best German Wines and Winemakers – Eichelmann WeinGuide Deutschland 2017 Awards, Germany
Germany's 28 Best Winemakers - Eichelmann WeinGuide Deutschland 2016
Best German Wines and Winemakers – Eichelmann WeinGuide Deutschland 2016 Awards, Germany
Germany's Top 27 Winemakers: 5 out of 5 Grapes - Eichelmann WeinGuide
Deutschland 2015
Best German Wines and Winemakers – Eichelmann Wine Guide Deutschland 2015 Awards, Germany
Germany’s 26 Top Winemakers - Eichelmann WeinGuide Deutschland 2014
Best German Winemakers – Eichelmann Wine Guide Deutschland 2014 Awards, Germany
Best German Wines and Winemakers – Eichelmann Wine Guide Deutschland 2013 Awards, Germany
Best German Wines - Eichelmann Wine Guide 2012 Awards, Germany
Wine ratings: German wine --- Eichelmann 2010 (Awards)
schiller-wine: Related Postings
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Lunch, Wine Tasting and Winery Tour at Weingut Jülg in Schweigen, Pfalz with the Jülg Family – Germany-South Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2014)
Cellar Tour and Tasting at Weingut Salwey in Oberrotweil, Kaiserstuhl, Baden, with Benno Salwey – Germany-South Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2015)
Vineyard Walk and Tasting at Weingut Meyer-Näkel in Dernau, Ahr, with Dörte Näkel– Germany-North Tour by ombiasy WineTours (2015)