German Wine

During the 18th and 19th centuries, German wines were as respected and sought after as those from the great regions of France, but disease, depression and of course war all took their toll. From 1945 onwards, the German wine industry was in tatters. From those ruins rose Liebfraumilch - not a wine that you will find in the domestic German market. Liebfraumilch may originate from vineyards anywhere in the Nahe, Rheinhessen, Rheingau or Pfalz. It’s a multi-regional, industrial brand with no true sense of place.

As a result, Germany has been regarded by wine drinkers as nothing more than a source of cheap, sweet and unchallenging wines sold under names like Liebfraumilch, Niersteiner, Gutes Domtal, and Piesporter Michelsberg. If that’s the extent of your experience of German wine, don’t be put off! Those mass produced concoctions bear no resemblance to the truly great single-estate wines produced by Germany's great estates today, turning out what many would argue are the world's greatest white wines. Good quality German wines match current tastes in cuisines, have a string of successful vintages behind them, and are continued good value for money.