Six places where you can taste, buy and experience wine

Veni, vidi, vino

Wine is in season all year round - this is also true in the Altbier stronghold of Düsseldorf. In fact, no one here can complain about a lack of wine expertise. Not only because ProWein, the world’s most important wine trade fair, is held once a year and always provides new impetus. The list of experienced wine merchants who offer you expert advice and a select assortment is long. We have selected six contact points for you that approach the complex topic of wine in a particularly creative and competent manner.       

Vino Tinto & Friends

It's not a cliché, it's culture in action: In Spain, people meet up with friends in their favorite bar after work and treat themselves to a few tapas and a glass of Vino Tinto. It was also Spanish red wine that encouraged Peter Heymanns to open his wine store on Bagelstraße more than 20 years ago - an import of southern European joie de vivre that the Pempelfort neighborhood thanked him for throughout his life. After his much too early death, his wife Monica Heymanns continued to run Vino Tinto, supported by some regular customers, among them today's managing directors Nicole Mathes-Kristiansen and Carsten Franck. Spanish quality wines are still a core competence, but the range of products does not end there: vintners from all over the world are represented. Their products can also be tasted at wine tastings, and on Fridays and Saturdays in the small wine bar or on the terrace. The wine is flanked by a selection of craft beer from micro-breweries and spirits from regional producers. And if you want to celebrate alone with your friends at Vino Tinto & Friends, you can rent a room here for events.

otherwine

With its listed buildings and owner-operated stores, Hohe Straße in Carlstadt is a very special shopping address, and Birgit Felzmann's wine store also benefits from this original Düsseldorf spirit. The graduate in business administration has remained true to her favorite neighborhood and has set up her business near the place where it all began for her: Carlsplatz. It was there that Felzmann discovered her passion for dry French country wines back in the 1980s. Today, she also carries items from Spain, Italy, Hungary or Greece and, of course, from Germany - at a very good price-performance ratio. The fact that "Frau anderweinig" now also offers three house wines is the vinified proof of the great wine knowledge that the holder of the "Diploma in Wine and Spirits" from the renowned London academy Wine & Spirit Education Trust possesses. Anyone who wants to share in this knowledge should book one of her popular seminars. Particularly sparkling: "Mrs. anderweinig's ultimate champagne seminar". Chinchin!

Pipco's Wine Compilation

Yvonne Hoffmann also enjoyed training at the Wine & Spirit Education Trust. In her wine shop in Düsseldorf-Friedrichstadt, however, things are more relaxed than academic. Just looking through the windows of the small store on the corner of Helmholtzstrasse and Bunsenstrasse, it's clear that no one needs to fear thresholds here. The furniture is vintage, the wines are presented in wooden crates that have been converted into wall shelves. There is a three-seater with cushions and a record player, and in the middle of the room is an old workbench that serves as a sideboard during the tastings. Yvonne Hoffmann focuses on natural wines from Germany and Austria, but the range also includes French and Spanish wines. The sommelière knows many of the winemakers personally. If you're looking for above-average quality at fair prices, Pipco's is the place for you. Hoffmann also shares her knowledge with professionals: she advises restaurateurs on wine selection for the delicatessen Bos Food in Meerbusch.

Concept Riesling

We go back to Carlstadt once again and turn to its bustling center: Carlsplatz. Here, a small wine bar with a great wine list and extremely knowledgeable staff has been enriching the surrounding market stalls since 2017. As the name suggests, Concept Riesling specializes in the most widely planted grape variety in Germany. But that's only half the truth. Basically, the entire spectrum of German wine culture is celebrated here - from the established greats of the local wine scene to the still rather unknown up-and-comers. And "celebrated" means literally, because there's often a lot going on in this hybrid of wine place and wine trade. "We want to be an uncomplicated place where really everyone drinks great wines from artisanal family wineries," says Philipp Kutsch, who co-founded Concept Riesling. More than 1000 positions are represented and the great thing about the location is not only that you can enjoy the wine here, but also that you can buy it by the bottle to take home. You can even bring your own snacks to share with friends. Just add a few delicacies from your favorite stands - and the evening will be perfect! 

SommeLerie

Another wine spot with female expertise. Before Susanne Fischer started her own business, she was head sommelière at the star-studded Hummerstübchen. Since 2009, she has now been providing a loyal clientele with wine and the associated knowledge in her SommeLerie on Unterbilker Bürgerstraße. To occasionally amaze the experienced wine drinker and to introduce the novice to the sheer inexhaustible universe of tastes of different wines and grape varieties - this is her goal, says Fischer. But above all, she has a message: wine should be fun! To make this wish come true, the sommelière focuses strictly on perfect craftsmanship and the people behind it. Her assortment consists of 300 wines of European origin, and she knows many of the winemakers at the smaller wineries, some of which are still little known, personally. Susanne Fischer has tasting packages and wine subscriptions ready for particularly knowledgeable students.

Kakhaber

Did you know that Georgia is considered the cradle of viticulture? Archaeologists date the first wine production in the South Caucasus to about 6,000 years before Christ. Clay vessels used in production, called qvevri, found at the site indicate that early Georgians were the first in the world to undertake the following experiment: Bury grape juice underground for the winter, and it turns into wine. It sounds exciting and archaic, and the great thing is that since 2020, all you need to do to trace - or rather taste - the history is to take a detour to Rethel Street, where you can taste the products of the Qvevri winemaking method in the here and now and in real life. Kakhaber Gabelaia comes from Tbilisi and, in his lovingly furnished wine shop with adjoining wine bar, not only stocks a selected range of Qvevri wines, but also, for example, Orange Wine, a special type of natural wine, as well as other white and red wines from Georgia. Supplemented by country-specific spirits, Georgian lager beers and delicatessen, which can also be tasted on site - just like the wines. And it's worth it!

Title image: Düsseldorf Tourism